White Veined Hardy Dutchman's Pipe Aristolochia fimbriata
Previously known as:
- Aristolochia ciliata
- Aristolochia insignis
- Phonetic Spelling
- a-ris-toh-LOH-kee-uh fim-bry-AH-tuh
- This plant has high severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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White-veined hardy Dutchman's pipe is a subtropical herbaceous perennial in the pipevine family (Aristolochiaceae). The plant is a native of Bolivia, Brazil, and northeast Argentina. The genus name is a compound of two Greek words: aristos, meaning "best," and locheia, meaning "childbirth." This references the flower bud's resemblance to a human fetus. The species epithet is Latin for "fringed," which describes the flower.
The creeping or sprawling herbaceous perennial prefers morning sun and afternoon shade. It will tolerate full shade and can tolerate full sun with adequate watering. Rich or sandy well-drained soil is preferred. It propagates by self-sowing of seeds from the previous season. It dies back and goes dormant in winter. While it is hardy down to zone 7 in cold climates it can be grown as an annual.
This deciduous groundcover grows 6 to 12 inches in height and spreads about 2 or 3 feet. New shoots are produced from the buds that sit at ground level atop a tuberous root system. The delicate foliage is heart-shaped and green with showy silver veining. Small, fragrant, speckled flowers resemble a trumpet-shaped clay pipe with a fringe of thread-like hairs at the opening. This prostrate mounding plant has green, wiry stems. Unlike most of its pipevine kin, it is not a twining vine and will not climb a trellis. It is sometimes grown as a houseplant with the top portion of the tuberous root exposed above ground to give added interest.
The pipevine swallowtail butterfly uses the plant as a food source. Their caterpillars will strip the above-ground growth of the plant in mid-summer. and the adult butterflies will return to lay more eggs. When the new caterpillars emerge in the spring they feast on the tuberous roots. If swallowtail larval browsing is too heavy consider planting one of the larger pipevines.
It is drought- and deer-resistant and works well in shady spots that could use a bright pop of color with its silvery leaves. The trailing form looks beautiful hanging from hanging baskets or cascading over a garden wall.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Aristolochia
- Species:
- fimbriata
- Family:
- Aristolochiaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Argentina Northeast, Bolivia, Brazil South, Paraguay, Uruguay
- Distribution:
- Introduced: Transcaucasus
- Wildlife Value:
- Larval host plant for the Pipevine swallowtail butterfly (Battus philenor) . In the south and southwest regions, the butterfly most commonly appears in late summer through fall. Adult Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies feed solely off of flower nectar from other plants like azaleas, thistles, verbena, lupines, and lilacs.
- Play Value:
- Wildlife Larval Host
- Dimensions:
- Height: 0 ft. 6 in. - 1 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 1 ft. 6 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Ground Cover
- Herbaceous Perennial
- Houseplant
- Habit/Form:
- Creeping
- Mounding
- Multi-stemmed
- Prostrate
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- High Organic Matter
- Sand
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Available Space To Plant:
- 3 feet-6 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Black
- Brown/Copper
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Fruit Description:
- Immature fruits are attractive green oval and ribbed resembling tiny watermelons. At maturity, they dry and split open to release small, disc-shaped seeds.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Red/Burgundy
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Solitary
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Long Bloom Season
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Trumpet
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- 1 inch long, and the trumpet is shaped like a clay pipe with tenticles on the end. The green tubes develop along the stem and at the opening flairs out to reveal mottled yellowish-brown to yellowish-maroon interiors. They bloom all summer.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Blue
- Gray/Silver
- Green
- Variegated
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Shape:
- Cordate
- Reniform
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- The leaves are blue green, heart-shaped, and marked with silver veins. The foliage is spaced along a wiry stem.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- The stems are green, wiry, and prostrate.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Container
- Hanging Baskets
- Houseplants
- Rock Wall
- Vertical Spaces
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Rock Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Problems:
- Poisonous to Humans
- Problem for Children