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Maypop Passion Flower, Passiflora incarnata L.1
D. W. Hall, V. V. Vandiver and J. A. Ferrell2Classification
Common Name: Maypop Passion Flower
Scientific Name: Passiflora incarnata L.
Family: Passifloraceae, Passion Flower Family
Seedling
The stem is smooth ( Figure1 ). The first leaves while sometimes not as lobed as the later leaves have two characteristic glands at the base of the blade on the petiole.
Figure 1. Seedling, Maypop Passion Flower, Passiflora incarnata L. Mature Plant
Maypop Passion Flower is a perennial ( Figure 1 ). The stems are smooth or have small hairs. The growth pattern is erect, creeping or climbing. The leaf blades are palmately 3-lobed (rarely 5-lobed) and 6-15 cm long. The leaves have leaf-like stipules and conspicuous glands on the petioles. The flowers are axillary and solitary. The flower stalks are 5-10 cm long and terminate with a whorl of three-toothed modified leaves, 3-6 mm long. The five sepals are usually green, or sometimes light lavender to white. The sepals are 2.5-3.5 cm long. The five petals are bluish white and 3 to 4 cm long. The fruit is a green, fleshy, egg-shaped berry, turning yellowish green. The seeds are dark brown and 4-6 mm long.
Figure 2. Mature plant, Maypop Passion Flower, Passiflora incarnata L. History
Passiflora is derived from Latin and means passion and flower. The Latin species name incarnata means flesh colored and alludes to part of the flower.Habitat
This weed is found throughout Florida on dry soils, especially along roadsides and in citrus groves and old fields. Its native range extends westward to Texas, eastward to Virginia and northward to Missouri. It was introduced further north from its previous southern range. It is also found in Bermuda.Biology
Reproduction is by seeds and root shoots. Cultivation may break apart and move root shoots to new areas. The edible fruit is called a Maypop.
Footnotes
1. This document is an excerpt from Weeds in Florida, SP 37, a publication of the Agronomy Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Publication date: May 1991. Revised: February 2006. Reviewed: November 2006. Please visit the EDIS Website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.2. David W. Hall, former extension botanist, Herbarium, Florida Museum of Natural History; Vernon V. Vandiver, associate professor emeritus, Agronomy Department; Jason A. Ferrell, assistant professor, Agronomy Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville FL 32611.
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U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.
Copyright Information
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