Plantoftheweek
THE ‘SPANISH FLAG’ MORNING GLORY
LIKE bindweed, morning glories usually have flowers shaped like loud-speakers. But on Ipomoea lobata the flowers are tiny, tubular, curved and come in clusters. They look a bit like bunches of tiny bananas. Just like other morning glories and bindweeds, this plant climbs by twining long stems around any convenient support. Each bloom is red in the bud, fading through orange to soft primrose yellow. Though named after the Spanish flag, colours of I.lobata are subtle. Sow seeds in pots in a greenhouse from March onwards. Pot the young plants up, but keep them protected from frost when they can be planted out.