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How to Grow Morning Glories: The Complete Morning Glory Flower Guide

Two delicate vivid blue and pink flowers of morning glory plant in a a garden in a sunny summer garden, outdoor floral background photographed with soft focus
Photo Credit
Cristina Ionescu/Shutterstock
Botanical Name
Ipomoea tricolor, I. purpurea
Plant Type
Flowers
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Soil pH
Neutral
Bloom Time
Summer
Fall
Flower Color
Blue
Pink
Purple
Red
White
Hardiness Zone
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Special Features
Attracts Butterflies
Attracts Songbirds

Planting, Growing, and Caring for Morning Glory Flowers

Catherine Boeckmann
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Want to grow morning glories? This plant, with its romantic tendrils and trumpet-shaped flowers, is beloved by butterflies and hummingbirds. It’s often mistaken for a perennial weed with the same name. Learn how to plant and grow morning glory flowers!

About Morning Glories

NOTE: This guide is NOT about the perennial weed that shares the common name of “morning glory.” That plant is classified as a noxious weed in many states. Read more below. 

Morning glories are tender annuals, so they are sensitive to cool temperatures and late frosts. They bloom from early summer to the first frost of fall. 

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Their fragrant, colorful flowers come in pink, purple-blue, magenta, or white colors. Pollinators love Morning Glories’ trumpet-shaped blooms.

Train twining morning glory vines over a pergola or arch, or use them as a dense groundcover. This drought-tolerant plant grows quickly—up to 10 feet in one season—and can self-seed fairly easily. Because of this, you’ll want to choose where you put this plant wisely! Otherwise, you may have more morning glories than you bargained for.

Warning: All morning glory seeds are poisonous, especially in large quantities. Keep them out of reach of children and pets.

Annual Versus Perennial Morning Glories

The attractive annual morning glory (Ipomoea spp.) is often mistaken for its perennial cousin, field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis), a very troublesome, invasive weed native to Europe and Asia. 

Field bindweed—also called “perennial morning glory” or “creeping jenny”—grows similarly to our annual morning glory but sends out deep, deep roots (up to 9 feet deep!), which make it very difficult to get rid of and allow it to overwinter in areas where cultivated morning glories could not. 

To tell the difference between the plants, look closely at the leaves, flowers, and vines:

  • The leaves of the annual morning glory are heart-shaped and large (2 or more inches across). Field bindweed leaves are shaped more like an arrowhead and smaller.
  • Annual morning glory flowers may be pink, white, magenta, blue, purple, or red. Field bindweed flowers only occur in either pink or white, and blooms are much smaller than annual morning glory.
  • Morning glory vines are usually thicker than bindweed vines and typically have small hairs.

In any case, if you come across a plant in your garden that resembles Morning Glory and you know you didn’t plant it, it’s best to err on the side of caution and treat it as a weed. 

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Planting

Choose a sunny spot. These plants need a lot of sun to bloom their best! Plant in moderately fertile, well-draining soil to encourage good foliage growth followed by plenty of flowers.

Finally, choose a location that is sheltered from strong, drying winds. Give them a fence, lattice, or trellis to climb up so that vines don’t crowd out other ground-level plants.

When to Plant Morning Glories

  • Sow seeds as early as possible after the danger of frost is over.

Purple Morning Glories

How to Plant Morning Glories

  • Germination rates are improved by filing down the seeds just enough to break the outer coat and then soaking them for 24 hours before planting. This encourages them to send out a root (it looks like a little worm).
  • Cover lightly with 1/4-inch of soil. Space seeds about 6 inches apart.
  • Water thoroughly at planting.
  • Seedlings should appear in about a week; some seeds may be stubborn and take 2 or 3 weeks to sprout.

Growing

  • Apply a balanced liquid fertilizer after planting. Do not over-fertilize, or the vine may grow more foliage than flowers.
  • Support this climbing plant with structures like trellises, pergolas, or arches.
    • Tip: Morning glories climb by twining their vines around a support, so make sure that whichever type of structure you grow them against has plenty of space for whorling!
  • Morning glories are low maintenance; just be sure to water during particularly dry periods.
  • Mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds.
  • If you don’t want the plant to reseed itself, pinch off old flowers before they turn into seedpods. This can also encourage the plant to keep producing more flowers. 

Purple morning glory vining over a wooden fence

Types

  • ‘Heavenly Blue’ are the classic morning glories with rich azure (blue) flowers and white throats. These plants climb to 12 feet.
  • ‘Scarlett O’Hara’ has bright red flowers with a white throat. It climbs to 15 feet.
  • Here are more recommended morning glory varieties!
'Heavenly Blue' morning glory. Photo by Heike Loechel/Wikimedia Commons.
‘Heavenly Blue’ morning glory. Photo by Heike Loechel/Wikimedia Commons.
Gardening Products

Pests/Diseases

Morning glories are fast-growing and are rarely bothered by pests or diseases to a significant extent.

Morning Glory Pests and Diseases
Pest/DiseaseTypeSymptomsControl/Prevention
AphidsInsectMisshapen/yellow leaves; distorted flowers; leaf drop; sticky “honeydew” (excretion) on leaves; sooty, black moldKnock off with water spray; apply insecticidal soap; inspect new plants carefully; use slow-release fertilizers; avoid excess nitrogen; encourage aphid predators such as lacewings, ladybugs, spiders
Fusarium wiltFungusPlants wilt (sometimes one-sided) in daytime; later, entire plant wilts/dies; stunting; yellow leaves; poor flowering; roots rot; stem cross-section reveals brown discolorationDestroy infected plants/ roots/surrounding soil (do not compost); remove plant debris regularly; disinfect tools; resistant varieties; avoid excess nitrogen; in acidic soils, raise pH to 7.0; weed; 3- to 5-year rotation
Leaf minersInsectMeandering blisters in leaves caused by tunneling larvaeRemove infested leaves; weed; use row covers; till soil early in season; rotate plantings
Leaf spot (fungal)FungusVaries; leaf spots on lower leaves enlarge and turn brown/black; fuzzy growth or pustules in lesions; disease progresses upward; leaves dieDestroy infected leaves/ severely infected plants (do not compost); remove plant debris regularly; disinfect tools; resistant varieties; good air circulation; avoid overhead watering
RustFungusVaries; orange pustules on undersides of lower leaves/stems; spots on upper leaf surfaces; foliage distorts/ dies/drops; stunting; poor flowering; plants weakenedDestroy infected parts/severely diseased plants; remove plant debris regularly; disinfect tools; resistant varieties; good air circulation; avoid overhead watering; weed

Wit and Wisdom

growing morning glories inforgraphic
Flowers
About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana. Read More from Catherine Boeckmann
 

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Comments

Suzen (not verified)

8 years ago

In Thailand, MG's are a staple vegetable prepared as a stir fry. We ate them every day and I have found recipes online. They are delicious. I know seeds are toxic and they only used the greens (no flowers). Do you know if all morning glories are edible or are there any varieties that should not be consumed? Are they nutritious?

Betsy (not verified)

7 years 7 months ago

Thai Morning Glory is not the same thing as Western Morning Glory. If you are looking for Thai MG to stir fry look in an Asian grocery store for Chinese water spinach.

Stacie garrett (not verified)

8 years ago

My morning glory seedlings are about 3 inches high and they look very sickly like they're going to die. The past two weeks have been almost constant rain and colder than normal temperatures. My question is now that the rain has stopped and the temperatures are warming, Will they most likely come out of it and do well or should I go ahead and re-plant?

Considering the change in the weather, we would recommend that you start again. See if the original plants pull through but the conditions you describe—the plants and the weather—may be a sign of dampening off, which will eventually cause the seedlings to fail (at least, it usually does). So replant when warm, dry weather returms to be sure that you have the success you desire.

Sarah Webster (not verified)

8 years ago

My morning glory seedlings (started indoors 1st week of April live in new england) are so touch and go. Have transferred them all to individual peat pots. Some are doing so well, some are doing well then start yellowing. I suspected "damping off", and sprinkled cinnamon into the soil and it helped, but NOW, seedlings that were doing well, are yellowing, plants that weren't doing well have parts of their vines growing healthy and another seedling next to it IN THE SAME PEAT POT starts to wilt. I don't get it. They are kept in a portable outdoor greenhouse, I vent it during the day, I take them out and place them out into a sunny spot during the day (I take them out because they were getting too hot in the greenhouse during the day). I actually planted a few strong seedlings in the garden already as a test and the frost risk is very low at this point, they're doing great! My question is, what is the issue?!? I am allowing the soil to dry out now between waterings and they are getting more than adequate light, is it too cold outside for them right now?? They are kept in the greenhouse at night, with hot water jugs to maintain heat as it's still between 45 and 55 at night here right now. Help!!!

Dampening off is one of the most common problem when starting seeds. It is caused by a fungus and develops when temps are above 68°F, because—typically—soil is too wet or over fertilized or seedlings are crowded. We are not familiar with the cinnamon cure—trick; it does not sound like it cured the condition. Professionals grow from seed (they sell potted seedlings!) but they may have worked out all the bugs. You might, next time, if there is a next time, use a grow light to get the seedlings started; you do not mention that here. So that once established, the seedlings could be acclimated in/via the greenhouse.

One last thing: So you know that you can direct-seed morning glories? If not, see above for guidance.

We hope this helps!

Jacqueline (not verified)

8 years ago

What is the best soil to plant morning glories? I found out the hard way that morning glories do not like fertilizer. I am planning to plant them in pots so they can climb and cover my deck railing.

Morning glories need well draining soil—neither too sandy, in which case water would run through it, nor too thick/composted which would cause water to puddle and not drain. They like a soil pH of 6.0 to 7.5  (see that and more here:  http://www.almanac.com/content/ph-preferences)

Liz (not verified)

8 years ago

I just read an article stating that another name for Morning Glory is "Bindweed," and that it is an invasive pest plant that will choke out nearby plants.
Now, I'm not sure whether or not I wish to plant the seeds I bought. :-(

Wild morning glories (bindweed) are very invasive—and different than the annual Morning Glories that we plant by seed. Wild morning glories grow from both seeds and rhizomes and are very hard to destroy. If you have bindweed, be sure to get rid of it before it flowers and sets seed.