Product Description

Since they were first described in Europe in the 16th century, passionflowers have held a special fascination among plant collectors for their bold, beautiful, complicated blossoms and delectable passionfruits. Most are perennial climbers, but some are trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, or even annuals, and all lend a dramatic, tropical flavor to any situation. Since they have such a broad range of cultivation requirements, passionflowers can be grown by just about anyone, and cold-hardy species can be grown outdoors year-round. This authoritative, comprehensive volume describes 207 Passiflora species and 31 hybrids. A chapter is devoted to the remarkable coevolution of passionflowers with Heliconius butterflies, which many passionflower enthusiasts now raise alongside flowering vines in the greenhouse. As lushly illustrated as it is informative, Passiflora: Passionflowers of the World reveals the immense variation found among members of this extraordinary genus.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #357564 in Books
• Published on: 2004-09-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 432 pages

Review
"The outstanding images of the species are organized according to the most up-to-date phylogenetic hypothesis for Passifloraceae classification."
—L. C. Ewart, Choice, February 2005 (Choice )

"[This book] is a great resource if you, like me, just have to find out."
—Vern Nelson, Oregonian, February 24, 2005 (Oregonian )

The outstanding images of the species are organized according to the most up-to-date phylogenetic hypothesis for Passifloraceae classification. L. C. Ewart, Choice, February 2005 (Choice )

[This book] is a great resource if you, like me, just have to find out. Vern Nelson, Oregonian, February 24, 2005 (Oregonian )

About the Author
Torsten Ulmer studied botany at the University of Essen, Germany, focusing on the systematics of Passiflora. He has examined and classified herbarium specimens for botanists from around world and has set up a private collection of about 200 species and hybrids of Passiflora. This collection eventually developed into a specialty nursery that Torsten now runs with his wife, Bettina. Torsten and Bettina are the authors of the German-language Passionsblumen: Eine faszinierende Gattung.

John M. MacDougal received his doctorate degree in botany from Duke University, specializing in the taxonomy of passionflowers. He recently retired as conservatory manager at the Missouri Botanical Garden to pursue full-time studies of Passiflora. He is a founding member of the Passiflora Society International, and with more than 45 publications on passionflowers, he is considered an expert on the family, especially in Mexico and Central America.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Passionflowers can be propagated either genetically or vegetatively with few problems. In most cases they are grown from seeds or cuttings. They can also be propagated vegetatively by layering, root cuttings, air layering, or grafting, but because these procedures are quite intricate, they are recommended only for those species whose cuttings root with difficulty.

Young plants can be produced from store-bought seeds or from the seeds of fruit harvested from the garden. The seeds of most species need a soil temperature of at least 25°C in combination with a correspondingly high atmospheric or soil humidity. Sometimes even higher temperatures, such as 35°C, aid germination. While robust species such as Passiflora caerulea, P. capsularis, P. morifolia, P. ligularis, and P. edulis will germinate under less favorable conditions, growing more fastidious or tropical species from seeds will only be successful in a heated propagator or plastic-covered seed flat. To grow well and quickly, seedlings need at least 10 hours of daylight. When seeds are sown during winter, supplementary artificial light is necessary.

In most species, best results are achieved with dry fresh seeds. Older seeds may react unpredictably. Sometimes there is no difference to be noted in comparison with fresh seeds, but in most cases germination only occurs after some months, if at all. Seeds more than a few years old are rarely viable. However, agricultural experiments made in South America have revealed interesting results with Passiflora tripartita var. mollissima. While seeds several months old germinated only after a long time, if at all, the germination of seeds after a year's storage was rather good.

If the seeds are taken from a fruit, the arils must first be removed from the seeds — a rather tedious task. This can be achieved by rubbing the seeds in fine sand or washing them in a kitchen sieve. Under the moist, warm conditions in the propagator, mold may occur very rapidly, especially if small particles of pulp remain on the seeds. Some hobbyists dry the seeds on newspaper after washing; when completely dry, the seeds then separate easily from the remaining membranes. A preventive measure against mold is to treat seeds with a fungicide such as phthalimide or hydroxyquinoline sulfate, both tolerated well by plants. Dry seeds can be soaked overnight in plain water or tea. In some texts it is advised to soak seeds in milk or passionfruit juice. This does not make sense and is even detrimental. The juice of passionfruit contains exactly those inhibiting substances that prevent the seeds from germinating in the fruit.

The soil mix should be rather poor in nutrients and germ-free or sterilized. Proprietary seed-growing mixtures are best suited for this, as are small peat pots filled with a mixture of sand, peat, and standardized potting soil in equal parts. Instead of sand, use pumice gravel or perlite to make the soil more porous. Avoid using soil from the garden. This can be the breeding ground for noxious microorganisms or fungi, which will prosper under the warm conditions of a propagator and jeopardize the barely resistant seedlings.

Slightly cover the seeds with soil and firm them down a little. Depending on how old the seeds are, germination will occur after 10–28 days. In rare cases the first seedlings will appear only after some months. It is important to remain patient, even if no seedlings can be seen after 8 weeks. To prevent the dreaded toppling-over disease or damping-off, spray the seedlings regularly with a fungicide and regularly air out the propagator. As the young plants develop further, carefully harden them off by occasionally taking the lid off the propagator for an hour or longer.

The plants should remain in the propagator until they have reached a height of about 5 cm. After this point, move them into small pots, being careful not to damage the roots. Spray them with water several times a day initially to make the transition easier. The first flowers may appear within 6–9 months on species such as Passiflora capsularis, P. gracilis, and P. morifolia. As a rule, most passionflowers produce flowers the 2nd year after sowing. Sometimes, however, several years may pass before the first flowers appear, as is the case with P. serratodigitata and other species that flower in the canopy of their native forests. There are rare cases in which plants raised from seedlings have not flowered even after many years of cultivation, despite the best care. This does not occur with vegetative propagation by cuttings taken from flowering plants of the same species.

Customer Reviews

Fantastic photographs - Great for Gardeners!
Hundreds of gorgeous photographs and lots of information about a flower that is not well known, beyond the usual nursery varieties. Passionflowers are a spectacular species and this volume tells you how to grow them, where they are found, the legend associated with Christ's crown of thorns and even more detailed knowledge for horticulturists or biologists. It's a good buy just for the pictures alone. The authors are experts, yet communicate clearly for everyone. Some of these flowers are out of this world!

passion flowers
I've found this book to be more than informative. It helped me to identify a volunter that sprouted up in my garden. This book gives you information on the history, cultivation, propagation (various forms), and most inmortantly in depth descriptions with beautifull color photos. It make you want to have all the passion flowers you see!
It also has info on the butterflies that feed on them. I would recommend this book if you really are into passion flowers.

Excellent taxonomic resource
This is very good scientific treatment of the genus Passiflora, and is also the most complete treatment of the genus available in book form. It contains a wealth of information, from purely taxonomic data, to horticultural information and natural history. The species descriptions are short but informative, and most are accompanied by leaf illustrations that are useful for checking identifications. The color plates are numerous and do an excellent job of documenting Passiflora diversity, both morphological as well as socio-economic. Although many species are not treated here (about half the genus is missing), this does represent the most complete standalone treatment of the genus available to date. Most of those species that any layman or casually interested botanist is likely to encounter are included, and a table at the beginning lists the approximate numbers of species for all infrageneric taxa, which should help those studying diversity in the genus. Photographs of every listed species are included in the color plates, including numerous rare and infrequently documented taxa, further increasing the scientific value of this book. There are also short chapters on passion fruits, regional descriptions of Passiflora diversity (Belize and the Atlantic forest of Brazil, respectively), cultivation, and more. Definitely a worthwhile purchase for anyone interested in the genus.