What is a Mandevilla Plant?

Types of Mandevilla

• Mandevilla splendens is an evergreen variety. This plant grows 10 to 15 feet long, with 3- to 8-inch leaves and 4-inch-wide, pale-pink, trumpet-shaped blossoms that deepen to a rose color as the flower matures. Chilean jasmine (Mandevilla laxa) is a deciduous species with heart-shaped, opposite dark-green leaves and showy, fragrant white blossoms. It usually grows to about 15 feet in length. Mandevilla boliviensis plants have five-lobed white blossoms with yellow throats, and dark-green oval-shaped leaves.

Hybrids and Cultivars

• Mandevilla x amabilis plants grow to 20 feet long as outdoor plants in warm climates, but stay considerably smaller if cultivated as container plants. They have five-lobed deep-pink blossoms with yellow throats, and dark-green, wrinkled, oval-shaped leaves. Other Mandevilla cultivars include Mandevilla sanderi "Red Riding Hood," an evergreen variety that produces 4-inch-long red blossoms and dark-green leaves, and Mandevilla x amoena "Alice du Pont," which grows to about 20 feet long and yields clusters of bright-pink flowers.

Care and Cultivation

• Most mandevilla plants and cultivars are hardy in United States Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11. They prefer full sunlight or light shade and grow best in moist, well-drained, sandy soil. Outdoor plants need staking or trellises for support. You can also grow them as indoor plants in cold climates. Grow indoor mandevillas in a mixture of sand, peat moss and potting soil, and place them in a spot where they'll receive bright but indirect sunlight. Indoor mandevilla plants benefit from a biweekly application of phosphorus-based fertilizer during spring and summer.

Pests and Problems

• Mandevilla plants are generally healthy, but several sap-sucking insects feed on their foliage. Scale insects range in size from 1/8 inch to 1/16 inch long and look like grayish or brownish bumps on the plant's stem. Adult whiteflies are white, gnatlike flying insects; their young are mostly immobile and cling to the lower surfaces of leaves. Mealybugs are small, white, oval-shaped bugs that drain sap from mandevilla leaves and stems, causing stunted growth, discoloration and leaf loss.