Moonflower love

I am a laissez faire gardener, at best. Some might say lazy. I don’t make elaborate plans or sketches. I just plant things and see if they grow. Sure, I water a bit, but it’s haphazard and not what anyone would call consistent. I don’t fertilize or mulch. I don’t soak seeds overnight or start them indoors. I just plant them outside in June. I live with hungry rabbits and groundhogs who have families to feed, so I am thrilled when anything blooms.

I first read about Moonflowers in Jetta Carlson’s classic The Moonflower Vine. Here is how she described them.

How could you not want to see those blooms?

For years, ever since I read that description, I thought about planting them, and this June I finally did, along with their morning glory relatives. What a fine show they have put on. Morning glories in the morning and Moonflowers at night. When I take the dogs out before sunrise, the Moonflowers are still open. Twisting clockwise up the porch railing and columns. What a thrill for only $2.99 for a packet of 20 seeds. As a bonus, our local wildlife has shown no interest in the leaves or blossoms. Go figure.

The fun will be done after the first frost and we’ll have a bit of work to cut the vines down, but it will be well worth it.