| Marvelously fragrant and exotic in both color and size, this eye-popping Angel's Trumpet looks like something from a hot-house instead of an easy-to-grow, sun-loving tropical you can start from seed! Unlike single-flowered Angel's Trumpet blooms, which dangle, Ballerina Purple looks upward, the immense 6- to 8-inch flowers exquisitely whorled and twisted to show off their beauty! In the container or the sun-soaked garden, this summer-blooming show-off is a scene-stealer! The plant is quite compact in containers, reaching only about a 2- to 3-feet high and 3 feet wide. In the garden, it forms a dense, well-branched shrub 3- to 4-feet tall and slightly wider. Beginning in early summer and continuing until the fall weather sets in, the plant is covered with magnificent blooms, so fragrant that a single plant perfumes the garden! Large, very attractive fruits follow the blooms, and should be cut for splendid accents to fresh and dried arrangements. If you live north of zone 9 and want to grow Ballerina Purple in the garden as an annual, wait to plant it until the soil is thoroughly warm in spring. (I prefer the freedom of containers so that I can rearrange them on the patio all summer long!) Wherever you plant it, keep it there; transplant will slow its growth and shorten its bloomtime. Not fussy about soil, it asks only for plenty of sun. Pkt is 10 seeds. Zones 9-11. |
