🌸 Antigonus thin stings (coral climber) | The complete guide to growing and caring
📋 Quick summary - everything you need to know at a glance
Full sun/partial shade
6+ hours a day
Medium-multiple
Drought resistant!
Very easy
Rapid growth!
Summer-Autumn
Pink/Red/White
Up to 8-12 meters
Vigorous climber!
Sensitive to frost
Regrowing from the roots
🌱 Introducing Antigone Thin Stings
Naming and identification
- Hebrew name: Antigone thin stings, coral climber, bee bush
- Scientific name: Antigonon leptopus
- English names: Coral Vine, Queen's Wreath, Mexican Creeper, Chain of Love
- Family: Polygonaceae
- Type: Perennial twining climber
Origin and background
It originated in Mexico and Central America . It arrived in Egypt as early as 1805! It is also called the "necklace of love" due to its charming flower clusters.
Unique features
- 🌸 Spectacular bloom: lush pink/red clusters
- 💗 Heart-shaped leaves: fresh green
- 🚀 Very fast growth: 2-3 meters per season!
- 🦋 Attracts pollinators: bees, butterflies, hummingbirds
- 💪 Resistant to: heat, drought, calcareous soil
- 🔄 Regenerative: Re-grows from tubers after frost
Growth pattern
A twining climber that climbs using tendrils. Conditionally deciduous - sheds leaves in cold winters or drought, but regrows quickly.
✨ Why choose Antigon Thin Stings?
Abundant flowering
Covers the entire plant in summer
Rapid growth
Quick cover for fences
Very durable
Brown, drought, chalk
Easy to grow
Minimal care
Attracts pollinators
Bees and butterflies
Renewable
After cold or pruning
🎨 Varieties and colors
The antigone comes in several colors:
💗 Pink (most common)
The classic variety! Spectacular reddish-pink clusters.
❤️ Baja Red (dark red)
A strain with deep red blooms. Dramatic and striking!
⚪ Alba (White)
A variety with elegant white flowers . Rarer.
🌤️ Detailed growing conditions
☀️ Light
Antigone loves the sun! Will bloom in the shade under sufficient light conditions.
- ✅ Ideal: Full sun (6+ hours per day)
- 🌤️ Tolerates: partial shade (fewer flowers)
- ⚡ More sun = more flowers!
- 🏠 Recommended location: South or west wall/fence
💧 Irrigation
Good news! Antigone is very drought tolerant once established!
Irrigation schedule:
Regular watering for rooting
Once a week (in hot summer)
Less in partial shade
minimal
As needed
🌍 Land
Antigone adapts to almost any soil! This is one of its great advantages.
- ✅ Resistant to calcareous soil (perfect for Israel!)
- ✅ Sandy, clay, well-drained soil
- ✅ pH: 6.1-7.8 (acidic to slightly alkaline)
- ✅ Prefers rich soil for maximum flowering
- ⚠️ Sensitive to salinity
- ⚠️ Important: Good drainage!
🌡️ Temperature and durability
Antigone loves heat! Sensitive to frost but recovers well.
Thriving in the Israeli summer!
Damage at 0°C
But recovering!
Re-grows after a cold!
- Center and South: Evergreen (almost year-round)
- North and mountains: deciduous in winter, re-grows in spring
- All over the country: Suitable! - The tubers survive the cold
🧱 Uses and Support
Antigone is a twining climber that climbs using tendrils. Perfect for covering!
🏗️ Recommended uses
- 🌿 Hedge on a trellis
- 🧱 Wall or wall covering
- ⛩️ Pergola, gazebo
- 📍 Wide area coverage
- 🪴 Large flowerpot (with support)
📏 Dimensions
- 📈 Height: 8-12 meters (and more!)
- 📐 Spread: 3-6 meters wide
- 🚀 Rate: 2-3 meters per season
- 📅 Planting spacing: 2-3 m
⚙️ Types of support
- Grille/Trellis
- Chain link fence
- Tensioned wires
- Nearby tree or shrub
- Any climbing structure
🌸 Spectacular bloom!
Antigone's blooms are the star of the show! Covering the entire plant in a sea of pink.
📅 Flowering season
- Main: Summer-Fall
- Peak: August-October
- In warm climates: almost all year round!
- Lush and continuous flowering
🌺 Flower characteristics
- Color: Pink/Red/White
- Shape: Butterfly (pea-shaped)
- Structure: Spectacular clusters/ears
- Size: Small flowers, large clusters
🐝 Attracts pollinators!
Antigone is an excellent honey plant and attracts crowds of bees, butterflies and hummingbirds! Perfect for an eco-friendly garden.
🧪 Fertilization
Antigone doesn't require much fertilization! It does well even in poor soil.
Recommendations:
- ✅ Balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) once or twice during the growing season
- ✅ Compost or organic fertilizer in the spring
- ✅ Fertilizer for flowering plants (rich in potassium) to encourage flowering
- ❌ Don't overdo it! Too much nitrogen = leaves at the expense of flowers
✂️ Pruning - important for control!
Antigone grows quickly and can become overpowering! Regular pruning is essential to maintain size and shape.
⏰ When to prune?
- 📅 Main pruning: Late winter/early spring
- ✂️ Pruning for control: throughout the growing season
- ❄️ After frost: Removing dead parts
- ⚠️ Don't prune after September - it will damage the blooms!
✂️ How to trim?
- Remove dead and weak branches
- You can short it to the ground !
- The plant will regrow quickly.
- Maintain a controlled form
⚠️ Points to note
- Heavy pruning = fewer flowers in the same season
- The tubers survive - the plant will return!
- Check that it doesn't spread to the neighbors.
- Remove unwanted extensions
🌿 Multiplication
Antigone reproduces easily in a variety of methods!
🌱 From seeds
- Sow in spring
- Cover lightly with soil.
- Stay hydrated.
- Temperature: 18-24°C
- Germination: 2-4 weeks
- Flowering: After 2-3 years
✂️ Cuttings
- Take a 15-20 cm cutting.
- With 2-3 joints
- Remove lower leaves
- Plant in moist substrate
- Recommended lower temperature (21°C)
- Rooting: 3-4 weeks
🥔 Potatoes
- Dig up tubers in the fall
- Divide into parts
- Each part with an "eye"
- Plant in the spring.
The tubers can weigh up to 7 kg!
🔧 Common problems and solutions
Good news! Antigone is a very hardy plant with few problems.
😔 No rash
Reasons:
- Lack of sun
- Pruning too late
- Young plant (2-3 years)
Solution: Move to full sun, prune only in winter.
🍂 Falling leaves
Reasons:
- Drought (natural response)
- cold
- Rest season
It's okay! The plant will regrow after rain or in the spring.
🌿 Excessive growth
The problem:
- Takes over other plants
- Spreading everywhere
Solution: Prune regularly! Control the spread.
🥶 Frost damage
Signs:
- Black leaves and stems
- Complete dropout
Don't worry! The tubers survive. Prune to the ground and the plant will return in the spring.
🐛 Pests (rare)
Antigon is very resistant to pests and diseases , but sometimes:
Can appear sometimes.
Solution: Potassium soap, neem oil
In a very dry climate.
Solution: Water spray
rare.
Solution: Manual removal
Invasive potential:
Antigone is considered invasive in certain areas of the world! In Israel it is not classified as invasive, but it is important to know:
- 🚀 Grows very quickly and spreads easily
- 🥔 The tubers survive even after the plant is removed.
- 🌊 The seeds float in the water and disperse
- 🐦 Birds and animals spread the seeds
- 🌿 Can suffocate other plants
- Prune regularly to control size
- Do not plant near natural areas.
- Remove buds before they set seed.
- Monitor for spread to neighbors' yards
📅 Antigone Calendar
- Main pruning (end of winter)
- planting
- elk
- Starting new growth
- Rapid growth!
- Regular watering
- Pruning for control
- Branch orientation
- rash!
- Do not prune (keep flowers)
- Enjoying the pollinators
- Collect seeds (if desired)
- Rest / Dropout
- Reducing irrigation
- Mulch for frost protection
- Pruning in late winter
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Depends on the climate! In warm areas (center and south) - almost evergreen. In colder areas - deciduous in winter, re-grows in spring from tubers.
Don't worry! Trim all the dead parts down to the ground. The underground tubers survive the cold and will regrow in the spring. You can add mulch for protection.
Very fast! Can grow 2-3 meters in one season, and reach a height of 8-12 meters. Requires pruning for control!
Yes! In a large pot (40+ liters) with support. Ideal for a sunny balcony. Remember that it will need more frequent watering.
📊 Summary table
| category | Details |
|---|---|
| ☀️ Light | Full sun/partial shade |
| 💧 Irrigation | Medium, drought resistant |
| 🌍 Land | Almost any type, chalk resistant |
| 🌡️ Temperature | Sensitive to frost, re-grows |
| 📏 Size | 8-12 meters high |
| 🌸 Blossom | Summer-Fall (Pink/Red/White) |
| 📊 Difficulty level | Very easy! |
| 🐝 Special advantage | Attracts bees and butterflies |
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The guide was written by the Deco Garden team of experts.