Passiflora caerulea
Passiflora sexflora
blue passion flower, bluecrown passionflower
goatsfoot
angular when young, glabrous.
terete to slightly flattened, densely soft-hairy.
weakly pungent, glabrous;
stipules subreniform, 10–20 × 5–10 mm, glandular-serrate;
petiole glandular, glands clavate;
blade roughly symmetric, 3–10(–16) × 4–11(–14) cm, deeply (3–)5–7(–9)-lobed, middle lobe as long as or longer than lateral lobes, margins entire but often serrate basally on lobes;
abaxial fine veins prominently raised, abaxial nectaries scattered along margins.
not pungent, densely soft-hairy;
stipules linear-setaceous, 2–5 × 0.5 mm, eglandular;
petiole eglandular;
blade roughly symmetric, 2–10 × 2–15 cm, 2–3-lobed, middle lobe shorter than lateral lobes, lobes unlobed, margins entire;
abaxial fine veins prominently raised but obscured by pubescence, abaxial nectaries absent.
floral tube cuplike, 4–5 mm deep;
sepals white, 20–35 × 10–15 mm;
petals white, 20–40 × 10–15 mm;
corona filament whorls 4, outer filaments dark purple basally, white medially, purple apically (rarely entirely white), linear, terete to slightly flattened, 10–20 mm.
floral tube absent;
sepals greenish white, 9–13 × 2–3 mm;
petals white, 5–9 × 1–2 mm;
corona filament whorls 2, outer filaments purple basally, white apically, linear-filiform, terete, 5–9 mm.
yellow-orange to orange, ovoid to ellipsoid, 30–50 × 30–35 mm.
blue-black, ovoid, ellipsoid, or subglobose to dorsiventrally compressed, 5–10 × 5–8 mm.
bracts ovate to ovate-oblong, 15–25 × 10–15 mm, margins entire or weakly serrate, eglandular.
bracts linear-subulate to setaceous, 2–6 × 0.5–1 mm, margins entire or incised, eglandular.
= 18.
Passiflora caerulea
Passiflora sexflora
Passiflora caerulea is cultivated widely in the flora area but naturalized only in the Los Angeles metropolitan area (see F. Hrusa et al. 2002). It is possibly introduced in the Mule Mountains of southeastern Arizona (J. Koweek, pers. comm.), although this has not been confirmed. It was reported also from Utah by S. L. Welsh et al. (2003), although as “cultivated...long-persisting,” suggesting that it is not actually naturalized there. This species is cold-hardy and can be cultivated in gardens in relatively cold regions (at least USDA plant hardiness zone 6), but it is unlikely to flower in such areas because of relatively short growing seasons, although it still makes an interesting foliage plant. Even in the absence of sexual reproduction, this species can persist and even spread locally by root suckering.
The artificial hybrid Passiflora ×belotii will key to P. caerulea in this treatment. However, the leaves of P. ×belotii are consistently three-lobed, unlike the primarily five- to seven-lobed leaves of P. caerulea.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Found in the flora area only in extreme southeastern Florida, Passiflora sexflora responds vigorously to moderate disturbance of its forested habitats, with rapid seed germination and plant growth in treefalls or other canopy openings (J. Blakley, pers. comm.). There have been successful attempts at reintroducing it into the wild in Florida (J. Possley et al. 2007), where it is listed as endangered.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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