Morning glory

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This article is about the common flower. For more uses of this name see Morning glory (disambiguation).

Morning glory is one of several annual, dicot, climbing plants of the following species, all belonging to the Convolvulaceae family and grown in blue, pink, purple, red, or white blooms. See also Ipomoea.

As its name implies, morning glory flowers, which are saucer-shaped, open at morning time, allowing them to be pollinated by hummingbirds, butterflies, bees and other daytime insects and birds. The flower lasts for a single morning and dies in the afternoon. New flowers bloom each day. The flower color usually starts to fade a couple of hours before the petals start showing visible curling. They are partial to full sun throughout the day, and mesic soils.

The seeds of many species of morning glory contain d-lysergic acid amide, ergoline alkaloids better known as LSA. Seeds of I. violacea and R. corymbosa are used as hallucinogens. They are about 5% to 10% as potent as LSD. To discourage morning glory's use as hallucinogenic drugs, some commercial seed producers have started treating seeds with a chemical that will not wash off. This chemical has been known to cause vomiting, nausea and abdominal pain. Typically some form of a warning or notice is printed on the package if seeds have been treated.

Morning glory is also called asagao (in Japanese, a compound of 朝 asa "morning" and 顔 kao "face"). It was first known in China for its medicinal uses, due to the laxative properties of its seeds. It was introduced to the Japanese in the 9th century, and they were the first to cultivate it as an ornament. During the Edo Period, it became a very popular ornamental flower. Aztec priests in Mexico were also known to use the plant's hallucinogenic properties to commune with their gods (see Rivea corymbosa). Ancient Mesoamerican civilisations used it to coagulate rubber latex to produce bouncing rubber balls. The sulphur in the Morning Glory vine served to vulcanize the rubber; a process which pre-dates the Charles Goodyear discovery by over 1000 years. In recent years, it's become abundant in North American gardens. It's treated as a perennial in many tropical areas and as an annual in colder climates.

Image:MorningGlories-Tonsofem.jpg Template:Commons

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Species, Subspecies & Varieties

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Gallery

Light Blue Ipomoea purpurea

The same flower up close

Pink Ipomoea purpurea

Pink Ipomoea purpurea close-up

Pink Ipomoea purpurea

Purple Ipomoea purpurea close-up

Purple Ipomoea purpurea close-up

Purple Ipomoea purpurea close-up

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External links

Template:Hallucinogenic lysergamidesfr:Ipomoea purpurea ja:アサガオ zh:牵牛花

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