How to Plant Mandevillas

Garden enthusiasts covet mandevilla vines for their showy, trumpet-shaped flowers, glossy, green leaves and bold colors. Depending on where you live, you may need to plant and grow this tender perennial as an annual. Mandevilla climbs by twining on walls, fences, trellises and posts. It thrives in the ground or in a container with support. Mandevillas are not labor intensive, but the vines require vigilant attention to weather and moisture conditions.

Things You'll Need

• Compost
• Shovel

Instructions

1. Plant mandevilla directly in the ground where it receives bright, full sun. Amend the soil with plenty of compost for good drainage and nutrients. Dig a hole a little deeper than the root ball of the plant and twice as wide. Remove mandevilla from its container and loosen the root ball. Place the plant in the hole and water thoroughly. Fill the hole and cover the roots with amended soil and water again.

2. Water your mandevilla, at least 2 or 3 inches deep, once a week during summer. Check it each day for moisture and water again as needed; mandevilla needs constant moisture but not water logging which can result in root rot. Cut back to less frequent watering in winter.

3. Plant mandevilla in a container if your winters are too cold for the plant. Take the plant indoors for over wintering as the temperatures begin to cool off. Keep it separated from houseplants to avoid transference of possible insects or disease. Remove decayed matter from the soil, as insects such as spider mites like to lay larvae in this material. Spray the mandevilla with soapy water if it is affected by spider mites.

4. Prune mandevilla vines overwintered indoors; overwintered plants tend to grow sparse and spindly. Remove sparse and spindly stems when you set the plant back outside. A healthy lush plant that overwintered in the ground needs no pruning.

Tips & Warnings

• Mandevilla also looks attractive in hanging baskets or in window boxes.

• Do not let mandevilla dry out, especially during the summer months.

References

• Missouri Botanical Garden: Mandevilla x amabilis: Mandevilla splendens Pink Allamanda
• University of Florida Extension; Mandevilla splendens Pink Allamanda; Edward F. Gilman; 1999
• North Carolina State University; Mandevilla splendens; Erv Evans;
• "Sunset Vines and Ground Covers"; Suzanne Normand Eyre; 1999