How a Cardinal Vine Attaches

Growth Habit

• As cardinal vines mature, their growing stems typically encounter natural supports, such as nearby shrub branches. The stems slowly twist around the support as more foliage dots the vine. This spiraling growth technique provides cardinal vines with a photosynthesis advantage -- they use their grasping strength to pull themselves out from under other shady plants and into the sun for maximum energy production. In fact, vines commonly have better flowering potential and reproductive success in full sunlight when a support allows them to climb high. However, supports are easily broken by vines if they are not sturdy enough to hold the growing plant weight.

Ideal Supports

• Because cardinal vines must circle around supports, they cannot climb wide structures, such as tree trunks. Ideally, place a trellis, pole or set of strings near the seedlings for the best growing action. For the best appearance and vine-growth functionality, provide 8 inches of space between the supports. This spacing allows the vine to wrap casually around the support without crowding the growing foliage. Encourage even more growth with an arbor. Your vertical supports lead the vine up to the arbor's horizontal support where vines easily grasp the wood grid for a cascading effect.

Vertical Benefit

• Aside from less sunlight competition at ground level, cardinal vine attachment strategies provide your sensitive ground plants with shading, especially since the deep green leaves are often several inches long and wide. The red flowers spanning 1 inch across attract hummingbirds for sustenance and pollination. Because of the red blossom hue, bees have difficulty seeing the flowers. Hummingbirds, on the other hand, use the red color to direct them to food sources. The high vertical plant position places the vines directly in the hummingbird's line of vision for successful reproduction.

Ground Cover Alternative

• Cardinal vines are also useful ground covers. If you do not provide a support, the vines slowly curl around each other for a mounding effect. As a result, your soil remains shaded and protected from wind and rain erosion -- the vines slowly create a rainfall barrier to control water impacting the ground and to avoid soil compaction. In ideal growing conditions, your vines may actually grow and curl a full 360 degrees within several hours, according to the University of Illinois Extension.