Dipladenia is a beloved tropical vine among flower gardeners, due to its trumpet-shaped flowers and branching foliage. Aside from its beauty, growing dipladenia attracts hummingbirds and bees to your garden, supporting biodiversity.
Because it’s tropical, those in areas with cold winters have the luxury of growing a dipladenia indoors. Dipladenias can bring a burst of color to a sunny window, or they can live in hanging baskets giving growers a vibrant plant to admire even in winter light.
While dipladenia is generally a Mandevilla species, the genus encompasses vines that are called dipladenia and those that are called mandevilla. The two have distinct growing habits that deserve addressing. We will touch on that here, and discuss how you can include dipladenia flowers in your garden.
Is Dipladenia an Annual or Perennial Flower?
Dipladenia also commonly known as mandevilla is a beautiful tropical vine grown for its lush foliage and brightly colored trumpet-shaped flowers. But is it an annual or a perennial? The answer depends largely on where you live and how you choose to cultivate it.
What is Dipladenia?
Native to the tropical forests of South America, dipladenia is not cold hardy and thrives in warm, humid climates. The vines can reach up to 20 feet long and produce clusters of red, pink, white, or yellow blooms throughout spring and summer. When grown as container plants or in the landscape, dipladenia forms a bushy, mounding shape typically reaching 1-2 feet tall and 2 feet wide. The glossy green leaves provide a perfect backdrop for the vivid flowers that attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
Growing as an Annual
For most regions of the United States, dipladenia should be grown as an annual plant. This means replanting it each year from seed or nursery transplants. Start seeds indoors 8-12 weeks prior to your last expected frost date. Give them plenty of warmth, humidity, and bright light to help them germinate. Gradually transition young plants to outdoor conditions before transplanting them into the garden after all danger of frost has passed.
Select a site with full sun exposure and fertile, well-drained soil. Amend with compost or other organic matter if needed. Provide a sturdy trellis arbor, or fence for the vines to climb up. Pinch back growing tips to encourage bushy branching growth. Fertilize lightly and water when the top inch of soil becomes dry. With proper care, dipladenia will reward you with months of colorful blooms.
Overwintering Indoors
In colder climates, you can dig up established dipladenia roots in fall and overwinter the plants indoors as houseplants. This allows you to save favorite plant varieties from one year to the next.
When bringing inside:
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Cut back leggy stems to about 6-8 inches.
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Repot in a container one size larger using indoor potting mix.
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Place in a sunny window and reduce watering during dormancy.
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Resume normal watering in early spring when new growth appears.
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Gradually acclimate to outdoor conditions before moving outside after all danger of frost has passed.
Growing as a Perennial
Gardeners in USDA plant hardiness zones 10-11 can grow dipladenia as a perennial flowering vine. Establish plants in a protected, frost-free location with sun exposure and rich, well-drained soil. Apply mulch around the base to conserve moisture and insulate roots from cold snaps. Prune lightly after flowering to encourage new growth.
In the warmest zones, dipladenia may only lose some leaves over winter. Further north, it may die back to the ground after frost but re-sprout the following spring. Prune out any dead stems as needed. With proper care, the same plants can be grown for many years.
Key Differences Between Annuals and Perennials
Annuals:
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Complete their entire lifecycle in one season.
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Must be replanted each year from seed or new transplants.
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Often selected for quick, colorful seasonal displays.
Perennials:
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Persist for many years.
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Re-sprout from overwintering root structures annually.
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Provide permanent structure and seasonal interest in the garden.
Making the Most of Dipladenia
The versatility of dipladenia gives gardeners options for enjoying its tropical beauty whether grown as an annual or perennial. With the right climate and care, you can overwinter treasured plants indoors or incorporate dipladenia as a permanent flowering fixture in your outdoor space. No matter how you choose to cultivate it, dipladenia brings long-lasting color and visual appeal to gardens and patios.
Key Tips for Success:
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Provide plenty of warmth, sunlight, and humidity
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Select disease-resistant, hardy varieties
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Amend soil with organic matter
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Water when top inch of soil is dry
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Prune to encourage bushy growth
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Bring indoors before first frost
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Mulch roots if overwintering outside
So is dipladenia an annual or a perennial? With the proper growing conditions and care, this tropical beauty can be enjoyed each season whether replanted annually or carried over year after year. Give it a try in your own garden and enjoy the vibrant, lasting color it provides.
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What is a Dipladenia?
Diplaenias are a part of the Mandevilla genus. These are also known as rock trumpet and have varying common names depending on their species and variations. They live happily in containers or the ground in their hardiness range. Both are used to attract pollinators and add lively color wherever they are placed. In cooler seasons, they may die back, but in the right conditions, they return in spring.
The vine is native to the Southwest United States, Mexico, Central America, the West Indies, and South America. It’s a tender annual outside its hardiness zones, and a perennial inside and close to those zones.
Dipladenias are bushy, and reach three to ten feet tall and spread two feet wide. The leaves are deep green, glossy, and arranged oppositely on climbing stems. While it does sometimes vine upward, most drape over after about two feet of vertical growth. In this case, the tubular flowers spill over luxuriously, attracting hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. The flowers range in color from white to yellow, pink, and orange. A few species have red flowers.
Dipladenias are long-blooming, opening their petals from March to November in subtropical and tropical areas. When they mature, they grow tuberous roots, making them excellent candidates for propagation by division.
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FAQ
Does Dipladenia need sun or shade?
Light: When planted in the ground outdoors, full sun is okay. However, when it is really hot out, Dipladenia’s would prefer to be given some afternoon shade during the hottest part of the day. If grown indoors, make sure to have your plant in a well-lit space, but avoid direct sun/excessively hot conditions.
Can Dipladenia be kept over winter?
Yes, in regions where temperatures drop below 45 degrees F (7 degrees C) in winter, it’s advisable to bring Rio Dipladenias indoors. They should be placed near a window with all-day sunlight and watered only when the top 2 inches (5 cm) of soil begins to dry out.
Do Dipladenia grow in pots or ground?
This increasingly popular flowering plant does well in hanging pots and butterfly gardens. Alyssa is a writer for MarthaStewart.com. The perfect flowering plant meets all of these requirements—not too big (or small!), has plentiful flowers, is easy to transplant, works in both pots or the ground, and is long-lasting.
Is a Dipladenia a perennial or annual?
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Perennial Nature:Dipladenia is a tropical or subtropical plant that can live for multiple years in suitable climates, producing blooms throughout the growing season.
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Cold Climate Considerations:In areas with cold winters, dipladenia cannot withstand frost and will die back to the ground.
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Overwintering:To keep dipladenia plants in colder climates, gardeners often bring them indoors during the winter months and then return them to their outdoor location in the spring.
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Annual Treatment:In colder climates, many gardeners treat dipladenia as an annual, planting them each spring and discarding them after the first frost.
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Blooming:Dipladenia is known for its vibrant, trumpet-shaped flowers that bloom from spring until the first frost.
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Other Names:Dipladenia is also sometimes referred to as Mandevilla, though botanists have reclassified them all into the genus Mandevilla.