Passiflora incarnata x cincinnata ‘Incense’

Passiflora 'Incense' is a passionflower bred for pure spectacle, an extraordinary cross between the native maypop, Passiflora incarnata, and the South American Passiflora cincinnata. The hybrid gathers the toughness of the native parent and the drama of the exotic one into a single deep-violet flower four to five inches across, the wavy corona filaments frilled and banded in purple and white, carrying a sweet, incense-like fragrance that gives the plant its name.

Once summer heat arrives, 'Incense' behaves as though it owns the fence. The vine throws a long succession of large, richly scented flowers from early summer until frost, each a magnet for Gulf fritillaries, native bees, swallowtails, and curious passersby. Fruit set is light, so the whole performance is in the blossom, which is exactly the point.

Despite the exotic look, 'Incense' keeps the hardiness of the native parent. In many Southeastern gardens, including here at Woodlanders in Aiken, South Carolina, the vine dies to the ground in winter and returns reliably each year from the root when planted in a protected, well-drained spot, typically hardy to about zone 7 with a little winter protection.

Fast-growing and tendril-climbing, 'Incense' quickly clothes a trellis, an arbor, a porch post, a mailbox, or a sunny fence. Give full sun, warm and well-drained soil, and a sturdy support, and the vine repays the season with a curtain of jewel-toned flowers. Site where the fragrance and the butterfly traffic can be enjoyed at close range, near a path, a gate, or a seat, and cut the old growth to the ground in late winter to keep the plant tidy and vigorous.