Thunbergia Alata "Orange Beauty"

For the second year in a row, we planted a small Thunbergia Alata "Orange Beauty" start in the mudroom flowerbed. This year we planted it a few weeks later than we did last year, so it has been slower to climb the trellis and come into bloom.

But just like last year, once it did begin to bloom it put on a great show! The native of East Africa has completely covered the trellis with its vigorous vines. It has bloomed non-stop since mid-Summer and shows no sign of letting up.

One bonus of our late frost this year is the intense color of the blooms the last few weeks. The Summer sun has a tendency to wash out the orange. But now, with cool weather and cloudy days, the blooms are an amazing, deep, rich shade of orange that we have never seen before.