How to Grow Cobaea Plants in your Garden

Gardener's HQ Guide to Growing Cathedral Bells, and Cup and Saucer Vine

Members of the Cobaea plant genus are climbing vines that can reach four metres in size.

Although they are half hardy perennials in nature gardeners often treat the plants as half hardy annuals.

They have bell shaped flowers of white, yellow or purple. Cobaea is know by the more common names of Cathedral bells, Mexican Ivy, and Cup and Saucer vine.

They flower from summer to Autumn.

How to Grow Cathedral Bells and other Cobaea

If planning to grow Cobaea from seeds indoors then the seeds should be nicked with a knife and sown in peat pots then covered lightly wit topsoil.

Cathedral bells take around two to four weeks to germinate and should be grown at about 22 to 24 degrees centigrade.

Cobaea should be started about two months before the seedlings are due to be transplanted in the middle of spring after the last possible frost. Seedlings should be spaced at about one meter into a sunny part of the garden.

Caring for Cobaea

Once growing the tips of Cobaea should be pinched to create branching.

Cobaea should be watered regularly and supported on a trellis.

I hope that you enjoyed this guide on how to grow Cobaea plants. You may also enjoy the following Gardener's HQ Polemoniaceae growing guides: How to grow Annual Phlox and Gilia plants.