VINES

Corona de Cristo
Passiflora foetida var. gossypifolia

The Foetid Passion Flower or Stinking Passion Flower is a creeping vine which has an edible fruit and leaves that have a mildly rank aroma. It is native to northern South America. The stems are thin, wiry and woody, covered with sticky yellow hairs. The leaves are three- to five-lobed and viscid-hairy. They give off an unpleasant odor when crushed. The flowers are white to pale cream colored, about 5-6 cm diameter. The fruit is globose, 2-3 cm diameter, yellowish-orange to red when ripe, and has numerous black seeds embedded in the pulp; the fruit are eaten and the seeds dispersed by birds. e bracts of this plant serve as insect traps, but it is as yet unknown whether the plant digests and gains nourishment from the trapped insects or if it merely uses the bracts as a defensive mechanism to protect its flowers and fruit. This passion flower tolerates arid ground.