Ipomoea albaMoonflower Vine
Hundreds of years before the Europeans developed rubber, the Aztecs mixed the juice of moonflower with tree latex to produce an elastic they made into rubber bands, hammers, and balls for a ritual game. A relative of the morning glory, moonflowert has its cousin's heart-shaped leaves and vining habit, but instead of greeting the Sun, like the morning glory does, the flowers of this Moon plant open in late afternoon and stay open for one night, which makes them wonderful in Moon gardens. They are pollinated by moths drawn to their scent, which humans can smell too, if they have the genes for it (not everyone can perceive the scent of some white flowers). The presence of moths in turn can attract bats, Hekate's friends. Try inhaling the scent of moonflowers before doing divination or before going to bed in order to produce prophetic dreams.
A climbing annual or tender
perennial and a vigorous grower in hot weather,
moonflower vines can get about 10 feet long up
north but will get 30 feet long in hot areas.
Flowers are about 5 inches across and are
fun to watch open--they take about two minutes.
After one day, they shrivel and begin to
turn into seed pods. Harvest the seeds when the
husk turns dry and black. This plant can be grown
indoors in a very sunny window.
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How to grow
Moonflower: Seeds germinate
better if they are nicked. File off a small
circle of the seedcoat on the end that is smooth.
You can use a nail file. Then soak them in
warm water overnight. You can also try
germinating them by putting them in a paper towel
towel that has been wet and then wrung out. Spread
the seeds out, carefully fold over the paper
towel, and put in a plastic bag. Put in a
relatively warm place, and the seeds will
germinate. You will also see which ones are
live this way and not plant ones that are duds.
Grow seedlings in warm soil (this is a
tropical plant). It needs a trellis or fence
to cling to, or you can grow it in a hanging
container. Down south, this plant can really
spread. We've seen it almost completely
covering mangroves, so plant with care and caution. It likes full sun,
especially up north, and good soil mixed with
sand. Soil that is too rich means lots of
leaves and few flowers. It blooms in 12
weeks.
General
growing info.
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Ipomoea alba
Moonflower Vine
10 seeds $3.50
This seed cannot be shipped to Arizona.
Uses in
Witchcraft & Magic:
Divination
Dreamwork
Moon Herb
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