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Aristolochia littoralis (Calico Flower) - A quick-growing, tender evergreen vine that can grow to 6 feet or more in length with kidney or heart-shaped thin, dark green leaves that are attached to the stems by long petioles. In the summer though late fall appear the flowers suspended from the stems by long stalks with greenish-yellow tubes at the end of which a large saucer-shaped cream face with a heart-shaped base is mottled with a deep purple-brown pattern on the inside and with the outside patterned with reddish-purple veins.
This plant is known to grow best in partial shade with evenly moist soil but will grow and look quite presentable with half day morning sun and only occasional irrigation. It is cold hardy to at least 25 degrees F for short durations - our garden plant survived the 1990 freeze when temperatures dropped to below 20°F.
Aristolochia littoralis is native to coastal areas in South America, notably in Brazil but also found from Columbia and Ecuador south to Argentina. The name for the genus comes from the Greek words 'aristos' meaning "best" and 'locheia' meaning "childbirth" which is thought to be a references to the flower's structure resemblance to a human fetus. The specific epithet is Latin meaning "of the seashore" in reference to where this plant is often found. It is also commonly called Dutchman’s pipe. We grew this species from 1989 until 2008 and continue to grow the larger flowering Aristolochia gigantea.
This information about Aristolochia littoralis displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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