Gallery The Tropical Zone ~ Flowers Of Hawai'i

Seagreen Blue Jade Vine ~ Strongylodon macrobotrys

Seagreen Blue Jade Vine
It is also called:
Green Jade Vine
It is a lovely aquamarine colour.
Strongylodon macrobotrys

This is how the buds appear before the blossoms open.
The flowers of the exotic Jade Vine have beautiful seagreen/turquoise colour flowers with purple stems that are so amazing it is almost beyond description. This colour is extremely rare in the plant world. However, they also appear in a brilliant orange-red variety. They are considered a vanishing treasure in the Philippine rainforest but are widely cultivated in many other tropical areas of the world.

The bloom is a pendant, with clustered birds beak-like inflorescence up to 4 1/2 ft. long and puts on a spectacular show when in bloom. Often used in Lei making, they may also be grown indoors. The hue is probably the rarest in the world of flowers. A vigorous grower once established, it can reach 30-40 ft tall, but is perfect for an arbor or a pergola where the blooming clusters can cascade and hang down.

Specimen vine.

Blooming season: winter-spring.
Grows best in Zones 10-11.
Young leaves had very dark, almost black color, then the leaf turns pale green with dark veins which looks like chlorosis, but it is not. As the leaf matures, it turns deep green.

This beautiful and exotic vine is a tropical rainforest species originally from the Philippines, and has aquamarine coloured flowers, sharing that feature with only two other plants in the world. It is an evergreen vine with thick, woody stems that can reach lengths of 25 metres in good conditions.

Jade vine is a tropical liana that does not tolerate frost.
This beauty grows near the Tedeschi Vineyards upcountry on Maui.

Maintain winter temperatures at 60ºF (15.6ºC) or above.
It grows best and is happiest when it’s roots are in the shade and it’s foliage top is in the sun. Some say it takes three to nine years of growing from seedling to full grown vine before they bloom.

Flowering normally takes place from Spring to early Summer but this is not always the case. Especially here on Maui where we experience warm tropical climate year round. Flowering can be irregular. Flowers are blue/green and pea shaped, each flower being 7 – 13 cm long and on large hanging clusters up to 1.5 metres in length. It is often grown on a pergola which allows dozens of pendulous blooms to appear as if they are cascading from the top. They are so exotic and so surreal it is difficult to believe they are real.

Pollination is thought to be by birds and bats but seed growth is not good. In botanical propagation, cuttings are successful but very challenging.

Reproduction and Conservation of Jade Vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys A. Gray), a Threatened Species

The Jade Vine is native to the Phillipines where it grows in the rainforest.

The inedible fruit is about 5 cm long and contain about 5 oblong seeds [relatively large-sized seed] (2)Legume large, 3-10 seeded. The leaves and foliage are an irritant, and causes an itching sensationa, so it is recommended that you wear gloves when pruning the vines.

The jade vine, Strongylodon macrobotrys, is a rare, decorative papilionoid legume that grows at low to medium altitudes in damp, cooler mountainous forests and rainforests on the Hawaiian Islands. Two clones of an identical plant, will not produce seed. It is better to air layer.

The exquisite beauty of a Lei woven and created with these exotic blooms is truly amazing.

Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
Shooting Date/Time 17 June 2009 15:07:21
Shutter Speed 1/60 Aperture 5.6 ISO 400
Flash Off