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Lapageria rosea (Chilean Bellflower) - The Chilean Bell Flower is one of the most beautiful of flowering vines. It is a vigorous plant that can grow to 10 feet tall and wide with support with elongated heart-shaped leathery evergreen leaves. In late summer and fall appear the 4" long succulent flowers that are usually a watermelon pink color with a netted overlay of darker red. These flowers are long lasting and in Chile are cut and sold for flower arrangements. The fruit is also sold in the markets and although they have lots of seeds, they are reportedly very sweet and soft, somewhat like custard.
Plant in bright shade in a rich well-drained soil with regular irrigation. It requires little fertilizer - particularly avoid fertilizers that might raise the pH levels of the soil. Do not allow to dry out or plant where other plants' roots will compete for moisture. Hardy to around 15-20 F. It is a cool-climate plant that seems to do best in northern California.
Lapageria is a monotypic genus with this one species coming from the cool coastal mountains of southern Chile and to the lower elevations of the Andes where it grows in damp forests, climbing on the lower branches of the native trees and shrubs. The genus is named for Josephine Tascher de la Pagerie, Napoleon Bonaparte's wife and the specific epithet is in reference to the typical rose-colored flowers. It is the national flower of Chile, where it is known as Copihue.
We have seen wonderful examples of this plant in the cooler bay area and along the Mendocino coast. We started growing this beautiful flowering vine in 2005 but after years of trying to produce sellable crops, we determined our climate was too warm to do it justice and we discontinued growing it in 2012. Web image courtesy of Margie Tyre from whom we got our stock plants.
The information displayed on this page about Lapageria rosea is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.
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