Climbing Hyacinth Bean Vine

Have you ever planted a hyacinth bean vine?  I discovered it when a friend shared some seeds from the fabulous purple pods that it produces.  It's so easy to grow.  I planted the seeds in the Spring and let it climb my arbor where it mixed in with the clematis and the trumpet vine. ( Not tall enough to see yet.)  I took these photos over the summer into the Fall.  The first images start in May and the last images are from October.

This year I decided I wanted it to climb and cascade onto these iron wall ornaments that I have mounted on the garage and onto the chimney.
I want it to grow here. . . . .

on this.

 And, here, too, although something is munching on them in this location.  We'll see if it works.

Since they aren't able to attach themselves to the side of the house,  I used fishing line to support them.  I attached one end of the clear filament to the iron wall ornament and tied the other end to the plant.  Its tendrils curled around the fishing line and climbed to the ornament as it grew.  I like to use the fishing line because it's almost invisible, it's waterproof, and it's strong..

  You can see that I helped the plants get a head start by directing their tendrils around the line. 

 
They've really climbed and grown.  This image is about 6 weeks later.

It has really filled in and the purple flowers are forming.
This is the wall ornament on the garage in October. 

The chimney gets more sun so they grew much better in this spot.  The vine and flowers have almost completely covered the wall ornament.  I stopped the plant munching with Milorganite, an inexpensive fertilizer that bugs and deer don't like.  New discovery!!

Close  Up of Flowers

The purple seed pods that appear after the flowers bloom are pretty too.  I will harvest them and place them in a brown paper bag to dry.  Next Spring I'll open them, just like I do peas, and plant the seeds and begin the process again.  To purchase seeds, go here.

Purple Seed Pods

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Kathy

They are so easy to grow with minimal effort, and look beautiful.  This is definitely a plant to keep in mind for next summer's garden.  If you'd like more ideas about using this plant in your garden, go  here.