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Conveniently growing moonflowers in containers/pots in USA, requirement, care, and guide

Moonflowers are easy to grow, look nice, and bloom for enough time to provide a decoration besides the main door or backyard. These flowers look nicer with heart-shaped leaves. Because these vines are perennial in warm climates, they don't require any special treatment before winter. Although it happens many times that moonflower vines don't live after winter in cool climates or too cold winter. 

I'm here to help you to grow moonflowers in containers with simple steps at the beginner level. I hope you're excited about it. 

Growing moonflowers in containers

Moonflowers don't grow in random seasons they need a particular time and duration to develop the roots to establish the growth further. So let's start the growing season and blooming of the flowers every year. 

Growing moonflowers in containers

Season of growing and blooming

The best time for sowing seeds of moonflower is early spring to late spring. This duration gives its roots enough time to become more established and adjust the growth rate. 

No matter you are growing them in a cool climate or a warm climate, spring is the best season to grow moonflowers. If you think you can grow it in fall as well, you may get seed germination, but in frost, these plants will die because of very low temperatures in non-established roots. 

Moonflowers bloom for a couple of weeks from late summer to early fall. Though it takes time initially to establish the roots later, moonflowers get rapid growth if they get the right platforms.

Identification of moonflowers

  • Plant type- Perennial vine in warm climates 
  • Size- According to space
  • Leaves- Heart-shaped
  • Flowers- Bigger than leaves 
  • Color- White flowers, blackish green leaves
  • Nature- Invasive in space without rhizomes

Requirements to grow moonflower at home

Types of containers

It is always better to choose containers according to the maximum size of the plants. But for seed germination, you always need nursery containers. Apart from nursery containers, when these plants become young, you need to transplant each of them into new containers to provide better growth. Moonflowers vine grows better in bigger containers of size 30 inches in diameter/wide and 15 inches deep. 

The material should be lightweight for moonflower vines. It should be plastic or wooden doesn't matter much. The container shape can be rectangular or cylindrical. 

  • Soil type- Non-compacted soil, well-drained, and ordinary % of organic components
  • Temperature- 50F to 85F in warm climate and 40F to 70F in cool climate 
  • Climate- Warm and warm-cool
  • Sunlight- 5 to 7 hours a day
  • Shade- As less as possible

Tools required

  • Wooden platform support 
  • Small cultivator tool
  • Small aeration reck

Material required

  • Vermicompost 
  • Sand
  • Seeds 

Method of growing moonflowers in containers

Step 1- Prepare a soil mixture for seed germination

To germinate seeds, you need to prepare very few mixtures of garden soil and vermicompost. Take a ratio of 2:1 of garden soil and vermicompost. Mix them well and keep some moisture in them. Fill this mixture in the nursery cups and sow the seeds each in one cup. Keep them in light and let the germinate. 

Step 2- Prepare a new soil mixture for transplantation

Meanwhile, seeds are germinating, you can choose the right containers. When you see these germinated seeds become young plants. plants need to be transplanted into bigger pots. But before that, you need a good fertilize less compacted soil mixture. For that, you can take 2:1:1 of garden soil, vermicompost, and sand respectively. Just mix them well in a big container or the same containers. Keep some moisture, don't wet the soil. Also, open the drainage holes in the containers. 

Step 3- Safe transplantation of moonflower vines

Now, transplant each of the cup moonflower young plants into the bigger ones. For that, use small cultivator tools to remove them comfortably. Don't panic if one or two plants will break. I expect you have a couple of more. Place them in the small dig you've made in the bigger containers. Cover them with the soil and keep them in full sunlight. 

Step 4- Set the platforms around containers

Now, set a 3 to 4 feet tall wooden platform that can provide support for the vines to grow upwards. These platforms should have at least three legs and each leg should have multiple horizontal connecting lines so that vines can grow up easily with easy support. 

Set these platforms around the containers. 

Step 5- Care for further growth of moonflower

Now, keep the irrigation of these plants whenever you will find the soil less moist. During summer, you can keep it regular once to two-three days for healthy growth. 

Don't fertilize after fall. If you think there is a need to provide the plants a boost, then use vermicompost before the rainy season once in very few quantities. 

Step 6- Don't consume moonflowers or leaves

Don't consume them not even once and don't even smell them regularly. These flowers and leaves are poisonous to humans and touching the flowers regularly can cause harm to the health. 

From this spring to late summer, plants will establish their roots and grow well on the platforms you set up earlier. The moonflowers start even blooming in their first season from late summer to early spring. 

You can be a bit careless with the fertilization of moonflower but it will not be bad if you fertilize in the next dry season. 

Care for moonflower plants

You don't need much care if you are following some basics. Even you don't need to take care of these plants on daily basis.

  • Water once a week to keep the moisture in the soil. 
  • Fertilize once a year with vermicompost or organic compost. 
  • Don't fertilize or irrigate after the end of fall regularly. 
  • Don't use growth boosters to keep them green and healthy. 
  • If moonflower plants don't survive the winter then start with new seeds again and don't depend on the last ones. 

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