1/31/2024 0 Comments Work clock shadesSeedlings of Mirabilis jalapa (L) and with first true leaves (R).Īs these are tender plants, put transplants outside after all risk of frost, about the same time you would plant tomatoes. Thin seedling or place transplants 12-24 inches apart. Transplant seedlings when large enough to handle, if needed, into individual. Sow the seeds no more than ¼ inch deep as light aids germination. Soaking the seeds in water overnight will speed up germination. Plants can be started from seed sown outdoors after the danger of frost has passed or indoors up to 8 weeks ahead of time. Grow four o’clocks in full sun in almost any type of soil but they do best in a humus-rich, well-drained spot. The wrinkled, dark-colored fruits on the plant (L and C) and harvested (R). They can also self-seed under the right conditions and have become naturalized in some parts of the southern U.S. Numerous large, dark, leathery, 5-ribbed, spherical “seeds” (actually a fruit that is a nut-like achene) with a wrinkled surface are produced in the fall. The flowers wilt by the following morning and those faded flowers are not self-shedding, remaining on the plant – so some people may not like the appearance. The flower buds (L), open flower (LC), fading flower in the morning (RC), and plant with many spent flowers (R). Hummingbirds and butterflies are also attracted to the flowers. These tubular flowers open late in the day or in the evening (although they will open earlier open earlier on rainy or very cloudy afternoons) as they are pollinated by sphinx moths (family Sphingidae) and other nocturnal pollinators with long tongues. ![]() Each flower is about two inches long and abruptly flares out to about an inch across at the end with five lobes. The colorful, trumpet-shaped portion of the flower is the pigmented calyx or partially fused sepals the flowers actually have no petals. Flowers are borne in terminal or axillary clusters of one to several flowers. They bloom in summer through fall and may have a strong, sweet-smelling fragrance when open (but sometimes have no noticeable scent). Flowers of different colors can be found on the same plant – either simultaneously or at different times – and flowers may even be bicolored, speckled, or variegated.įour o’clocks come in a variety of shades and colors. The plants produce elongated, dark-colored, swollen to tuberous taproots that can be a foot or more long and weigh up to 40 pounds in climates where they are perennial.įlowers are produced in bright and pastel shades of white, yellow, pink, magenta, and red. They are triangular to egg-shaped to lance-shaped, with smooth (non-toothed) edges. The opposite, ovate, bright green leaves are up to 4 inches long with a pointed end. They are light or bright green but may have a yellow or pink hue. The weak and brittle stems break easily and flop over if not supported. The shrub-like, erect and spreading, multi-branched plants grow 2-3 feet tall and wide. The shrub-like plants have medium green foliage. Discovered by Europeans in 1540, the root was used by indigenous peoples for medicinal purposes, as a hallucinogen, and as a purported aphrodisiac, while the flowers produce an edible red dye for coloring food. Native to tropical South America in the Andes – and also sometimes called Marvel of Peru – it is the most commonly grown ornamental species of Mirabilis. This old-fashioned garden ornamental in the four-o’clock family (Nyctaginaceae) is a tender perennial hardy in Zones 7-10, generally grown as an annual throughout most of the US. The common name of four o’clocks was given to Mirabilis jalapa because the flowers of this plant do not open until late in the day. Magenta four o’clocks blooming in a garden.
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