Gardening Flowers Annuals Bush Morning Glory By Viveka Neveln Viveka Neveln Instagram Viveka Neveln is the Garden Editor at BHG and a degreed horticulturist with broad gardening expertise earned over 3+ decades of practice and study. She has more than 20 years of experience writing and editing for both print and digital media. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on January 13, 2021 Share Tweet Pin Email Bush Morning Glory Overview Description If you are a fan of the lovely morning glory vines and their saucer shaped colorful blooms but just don't have the space for a large sprawling vine, bush morning glory can make a great substitute. Although not a true morning glory, these shrubby annuals are actually in the bindweed family. But don't be alarmed, these annual plants are not climbing or twining so there is no need to worry about them choking out other nearby plants. They form small mounds of brightly tricolor blooms for long periods and often times self seed for years of color. Genus Name Convolvulus tricolor Common Name Bush Morning Glory Plant Type Annual Light Sun Height 1 to 3 feet Width 1 to 2 feet Flower Color Blue, Pink, Purple, White, Yellow Foliage Color Blue/Green Season Features Fall Bloom, Summer Bloom Special Features Good for Containers, Low Maintenance Zones 10, 11, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 Propagation Seed Colorful Combinations If you are a fan of big, bold colors, bush morning glories are a great choice for your garden. The most common varieties show off some truly stunning colored blooms in a trio of shades, with a yellow center, white mid ring, and rich blue outer ring. If those colors are a bit too intense for your garden palette, there are several more subdued shades available as well. As most of these plants are seed grown varieties, the colors can vary slightly, especially when purchased as a seed mix. These mixes often come with shades of soft pink, white, purple and blue. Almost all of the varieties have tri-colored blooms. These lovely flowers are borne in profusion from early summer into the fall, in mild climates they may not quit until the frost knocks them out! The foliage is a simple heart shaped leaf in a nice medium green color that makes a good backdrop for the standout flowers. Bush Morning Glory Care Must-Knows This easy to grow annual can add loads of color to borders and containers with very little input. Hailing form Mediterranean areas of the world, bush morning glory plants like well drained soils that don't stay too wet. This makes them a great choice for use in rock gardens for seasonal color, but they also do just fine in regular garden soils. As they get started from seed, keep the plants watered regularly so they stay nice and moist until established. At this point, they tolerate drought quite well. Bush morning glory plants are used to growing in fairly poor soils, so don't over fertilize them, otherwise you will get lots of lush green foliage and lanky growth and very few flowers. It's also important to grow bush morning glories in full sun. This helps to keep plant habits from becoming too sprawling and makes sure there is a constant supply of blooms throughout their peak season. Too much shade can lead to floppy plants with an open habit that isn't very appealing in a garden setting. They also bloom much more poorly in lower light settings. Because bush morning glories are such easy to grow plants, and also fast growers, you typically won't see plants available for sale. These plants are easily started from seed in the spring, and can be sown directly in the ground. The seeds have a fairly hard outer coating, so score them with a file or give them a little knick with a nail clippers to help them take up water more quickly. After they bloom, bush morning glory tends to seed about the garden some, and seeds can be collected for future years planting as well. More Varieties of Bush Morning Glory Plant Bush Morning Glory With: Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit