Black-Eyed Susan Vine Care

The Black-Eyed Susan Vine is not the same plant as the Black-Eyed Susan. Whereas the Black-Eyed Susan is a native wildflower from the Eastern part of the United States the Black-Eyed Susan Vine is actually a native of the tropical parts of Madagascar, Africa and Asia. The names are similar because both varieties of flowering plants have a dark center and a radius of bright yellow or orange petals. However, the similarities generally end there.

Basic Information About the Black-Eyed Susan Vine

The Black-Eyed Susan Vine, also referred to as the Lemon Star or Thunbergia alata, is what is known as a perennial climber. This means that it self propagates each year when grown as a perennial and that it has a climbing vine structure. This plant will remain evergreen if planted in hardiness zones 10 and warmer, however, it can also be planted as an annual climbing vine in cooler hardiness zones. When planted in cooler hardiness zones it will grow to be about eight feet tall/long during each season, however, if it is planted in an evergreen region it can grow as tall/long as 20 feet.

Soil

The Black-Eyed Susan Vine prefers soil conditions that replicate the tropics or near tropics. This means that they like soil that is well-drained, that is warm and that is moist. If these conditions are not native to your area then you can replicate them using soil additives, strict watering schedules or greenhouse growing environments.

Sun and Shade

Since the Black-Eyed Susan Vine is a tropical plant it needs full sun during most of the day. However, you will need to make sure that it is planted in an area of your flower garden or yard that gets partial shade in the afternoon. This combination of sun and shade is ideal.

Propagating the Black-Eyed Susan Vine

You have two options when it comes to propagating the Black-Eyed Susan Vine. The first option is to sow its seeds. If you live in an evergreen region you can sow the seeds of the Black-Eyed Susan Vine directly in your flower bed, however, if you live in a cooler region of the country you will need to start the seeds inside about six to eight weeks before you anticipate the last frost of the season. When the soil temperature is above 60 degrees you can transplant your seedlings into your flower garden. If you don't want to buy new Black-Eyed Susan Vine seeds next year simply collect the dried seeds pods from this year's Black-Eyed Susan Vine and store them in a plastic bag.

The second option that you have is to use herbaceous stem cuttings to propagate your Black-Eyed Susan Vine. For this option you will take a stem cutting and place it in water until roots begin to grow. Then you can transplant the stem cutting into your garden.

Vine Support

The Black-Eyed Susan Vine is a climbing vine plant, which means that it needs vine support. There are several things that you can use as vine support including: trellising, sides of buildings and fences. Plant your Black-Eyed Susan Vines near existing structures or fences so you don’t have to add anything to your landscaping or garden.