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Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie': Sweet Potato Vine with Near-Black Foliage

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' is a tender tuberous perennial with heart-shaped, lobed, almost black leaves and trumpet-shaped lavender to pale purple flowers. Excellent in containers or weaving among plants in beds and borders.

Noteworthy Characteristics

Seeds are highly toxic if ingested.

Care

Grow in moderately fertile, well-drained soil in full sun. Shelter from cold, drying winds. Provide support or use as groundcover. Usually grown as an annual.

Propagation

Sow seed in spring after chipping or soaking 24 hours. Root softwood cuttings in spring or summer, or semi-ripe cuttings in summer.

Problems

White blister, rust, fungal leaf spots, stem rot, thread blight, charcoal rot, and wilt.

Overview

Growth Habit: Runs
Growth Pace: Moderate Grower
Light: Full Sun Only
Moisture: Adaptable
Characteristics: Showy Foliage
Bloom Time: Fall, Summer
Flower Color: Red
Uses: Beds and Borders, Ground Covers, Poisonous, Suitable as Annual, Trellis
Seasonal Interest: Summer Interest
Type: Vines

Other: Hollyhock (Alcea rosea): Tall, Classic Cottage Garden Biennial with Colorful Spikes; Stars of Persia (Allium christophii): Huge, Metallic Fuchsia Spheres for Early Summer; Drumstick Allium (Allium sphaerocephalon): Color-Changing Blooms for the Summer Garden; Angelonia (Angelonia angustifolia): Heat-Loving Summer Bloomer for Containers; Ipomoea alba: Moonflower with Fragrant Evening Blooms; Ipomoea batatas 'Margarita': Sweet Potato Vine with Lime Green Foliage; Ipomoea batatas 'Pink Frost': Variegated Sweet Potato Vine with Pink-Edged Leaves; Ipomoea lobata: Firecracker Vine with Multicolored Hummingbird Flowers; Ipomoea × multifida: Cardinal Climber with Crimson Flowers and Lobed Leaves; Ipomoea batatas 'Marguerite': Classic Chartreuse Sweet Potato Vine

Garden Articles

Golden Marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria): Long-Blooming Daisy-Like Flowers

Marguerite Daisy (Argyranthemum frutescens): Continuous Blooms for Containers

Figwort (Asarina scandens): Half-Hardy Climber with Indigo to White Flowers

Heath Aster (Aster ericoides): Native Clumping Perennial with Small White Flowers

Bigleaf Aster (Aster macrophyllus): Heart-Shaped Leaves Turning Mauve in Autumn

Tickseed Sunflower (Bidens aristosa): Late-Summer Gold for Meadows

False Chamomile (Boltonia asteroides): Late-Summer Clouds of White and Pink

Plants

Borage (Borago officinalis): Edible Blue Flowers for Herb Gardens

Brugmansia suaveolens: The Classic White Angel's Trumpet

Calendula officinalis: Edible Pot Marigold for Summer Color

Callicarpa dichotoma: Purple Beautyberry with Arching Form

Campanula 'Elizabeth': Pale Pink Bells with Dark Speckles

Campanula lactiflora: Milky Bellflower for Tall Borders

Canna 'Erebus': Gray-Green Foliage with Pink-Salmon Flowers