| Bower of beauty | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Bignoniaceae |
| Genus: | Pandorea |
| Species: | P. jasminoides |
| Binomial name | |
| Pandorea jasminoides | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Pandorea jasminoides, also known by the common namesbower of beauty[2] andbower vine,[3] is a species of flowering plant in the familyBignoniaceae and isendemic to eastern Australia. It is a woody climber withpinnate leaves that have three to nine egg-shaped leaflets and white or pink trumpet-shaped flowers that are red and hairy inside. It is also grown as anornamental.
Pandorea jasminoides is a woody climber with dark brown bark andglabrous stems. The leaves are mainly arranged in opposite pairs along the stems or sometimes inwhorls of three, and are 120–170 mm (4.7–6.7 in) long and pinnate with three to nine leaflets. The leaflets are egg-shaped to more or less lance-shaped, 45–60 mm (1.8–2.4 in) long and 15–30 mm (0.59–1.18 in) wide. The leaves are on apetiole 20–40 mm (0.79–1.57 in) long, the lateral leaflets onpetiolules 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) long and the end leaflet on a petiolule 5–30 mm (0.20–1.18 in) long.[2][3][4]
The flowers are borne on the ends of stems or in upper leaf axils in groups 60–120 mm (2.4–4.7 in) long. The fivesepals are fused at the base forming a cup-shaped tube 5–8 mm (0.20–0.31 in) long with lobes 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) long. The five petals are fused at the base forming a trumpet shape that is white or pink on the outside and pink to red and hairy inside, the tube 40–60 mm (1.6–2.4 in) long with lobes 20–30 mm (0.79–1.18 in) long. The fourstamens are enclosed in the petal tube. Flowering occurs from September to March and the fruit is an oblong or ovalcapsule 40–60 mm (1.6–2.4 in) long and 10–20 mm (0.39–0.79 in) wide containing winged seeds.[2][3][4][5]
Bower of beauty was first formally described in 1837 byGeorge Don, who gave it the nameTecoma jasminoides in his book,A General History of Dichlamydeous Plants.[6][7] In 1894,Karl Moritz Schumann changed the name toPandorea jasminoides inDie Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien.[8]
Pandorea jasminoides grows in rainforest from central eastern Queensland to theHastings River in New South Wales with isolated occurrences further south inKangaroo Valley and as far north asMount Lewis National Park in far northern Queensland.[3][4]
This climber can be propagated from seed, stem cuttings or bylayering. Its vigorous growth makes it suitable for screening or climbing on pergolas and trellises, however it should not be planted near sewer pipes. The species has gained theRoyal Horticultural Society'sAward of Garden Merit.[9][10]
Pandorea 'Lady Di', a cultivar with snow white, trumpet flowers is also a vigorous climber.[11]
Media related toPandorea jasminoides at Wikimedia Commons