Trumpet Vine, the Last Blast of Summer

As the first day of autumn is rapidly approaching and most of the blooms in the garden have faded, my trumpet vine is flowering with an exuberance that is positively spring-like. Trumpet vines (Campsis radicans) are vigorous plants that typically scamper up to 40 feet or more in just a few seasons. They cling to arbors and walls with aerial roots.


Most trumpet vines sport red-orange tubular flowers as you see above, but there are a few newer cultivars, such as one called 'Flava,' that have yellow flowers. Much loved by hummingbirds and bees, these vines attract wildlife and pollinators to the garden. (To learn more about landscaping for wildlife in our area, check out "Landscaping for Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest," written by Russell Link, wildlife biologist with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.)

In some parts of the country, trumpet vines can be invasive, but I have not found that to be the case in the Seattle area. Vigorous pruning may be required to keep a vine in bounds, but that's only necessary once, maybe twice, a season.