Grow Cup and Saucer Vine to Attract Pollinators

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Cup and Saucer Vine Care

Cobaea Scandens, cup and saucer vine — Blooms change from green to purple

Scientific name: Cobaea scandens
Common name: Cup and saucer vine
Growing zones: 9 to 11
Soil: Well-draining
Light needs: Full sun
Attracts: Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds

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When and Where to Plant Cup and Saucer Vine

To add this lovely vine to your garden, it’s best to start seeds indoors in the winter. Once spring arrives and the threat of frost has passed, gardeners can move these fast-growing plants outside to the location of their choice.

Many recommend growing it over a trellis, but it can also be grown over a fence or used to camouflage a wall. Even when grown as an annual in colder growing zones, cup and saucer vine can climb up to 20 feet in a single season. As long as it’s given enough space, this plant can also be grown in containers.

Cup and saucer vines originally come from Mexico and require full sun, so it’s recommended to grow them in an area where they’ll have plenty of light. In hotter regions of the country, the vine can tolerate some shade. However, it’s still recommended that the plant gets six hours of direct sun at a minimum. Blooms appear from late summer and into early fall; they start out green before turning to purple, and they remain for about four days.

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Benefits and Pollinator Perks

Cup and saucer (cobaea scandens) flower — Pollinators will flock to the cup-shaped flowers.

A pollinator favorite, cup and saucer vine brings in bees and butterflies with its cup-shaped, musky-scented flowers. Hummingbirds also flock to the blooms. Interestingly, some claim that cup and saucer vine also attracts a less conventional backyard pollinator: bats. However, others mention that bats usually only visit the vine in warmer growing zones.

Pests or Disease Problems

Cup and saucer vines don’t usually succumb to common pest or disease issues that plague other plants. However, gardeners are encouraged to make sure they give the plant enough space to grow, as it can grow up to 40 feet in height in warmer climates.