Striped Morning Glory
Carnevale Di Venezia morning glory is a rare European heirloom that brings Venetian carnival spirit to any garden with its stunning striped blooms in rose-pink and purple-blue. This frost-tender annual climber grows vigorously to fill trellises and arbors, reaching full flowering in 60 to 90 days. Hardy in zones 2 through 11, it thrives in full sun and moderate water, demanding only well-draining soil and basic care to deliver months of ornamental color.
12 inches apart
Full Sun
Moderate
2-11
?in H x ?in W
Annual
Moderate
Hover over chart points for details
The blooms alone justify growing this variety; their rose-pink and purple-blue striped petals look almost hand-painted, catching the eye every time you pass by. Finding this hard-to-find European cultivar means you're growing something genuinely rare rather than the common morning glories found everywhere. It reaches flowering maturity in about two to three months, giving you a quick payoff from seed, and once established it produces blooms continuously through the season.
This morning glory grows purely for ornamental display. Its vigorous vining habit makes it excellent for covering trellises, arbors, fences, and unsightly garden structures with color, while the distinctive striped flowers serve as living cut flowers for arrangements or simply as something to admire during morning hours when the blooms are fully open.
Start seeds indoors 4 to 6 weeks before your last frost date. Soak seeds overnight or lightly scarify them to improve germination. Sow them 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep in seed-starting mix kept at 65 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Expect germination in 5 to 21 days. Seedlings will be ready to transplant when they've developed their first true leaves.
Transplant outdoors only after your last frost date has passed and soil has warmed to at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Harden off seedlings by gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions over 7 to 10 days. Plant at the spacing of 8 to 10 inches, planting depth matching the depth of the seedling cell to avoid burying the stem.
Direct sow seeds into prepared garden beds after frost danger has passed and soil has warmed, following the same depth and spacing as transplanting. Soak seeds overnight before sowing to accelerate germination. Keep soil consistently moist until seedlings emerge and establish.
Pinch back the growing tips when seedlings are 4 to 6 inches tall to encourage branching and create denser vine growth. Once established and flowering, minimal pruning is needed; simply remove any dead stems or tangled growth to keep the vines tidy on their support structure.
Enter your ZIP code to see a personalized growing calendar for this plant.
“This variety carries the name of Venice's most famous festival, Carnevale, and comes directly from European seed traditions. Its rarity today suggests it nearly vanished from cultivation before heirloom seed companies began seeking it out and preserving it. By growing it now, you're participating in the recovery of a variety that should never have been allowed to disappear from gardens.”