PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
No image available
Bignoniaceae FAMILY

Incarvillea delavayi

Incarvillea delavayi

Edibility
1/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

One report suggests that the plant might be slightly toxic[1].

Cultivation Details

HabitPerennial
Growth—

Easily grown in a deep sandy but rich soil in full sun[2, 3]. Plants grow better if given some shade around midday[3]. Prefers a well-drained calcareous or neutral soil[4] and is drought tolerant when established[5]. Another report says that it dislikes dry summer soils[3]. Dislikes winter wet[3]. Prefers a sheltered position[4]. Plants are hardy to about -15°c, tolerating even lower temperatures if the roots are well mulched, preferably with dry bracken[6, 2, 3]. The crown of the plant requires protection from slugs in the winter[2]. A very ornamental plant, it usually takes about 3 - 4 years to come into flower from seed[4]. This species is often confused in cultivation with I. mairei[4]. Plants are intolerant of root disturbance, it is best to place them in their permanent positions whilst small[3]. The plants will often sulk for several years if they are divided[4].

Propagation

Seed - sow autumn or spring in a greenhouse. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle. Grow on for at least their first winter in a greenhouse and plant out into their permanent positions in spring after the last expected frosts. Division with care in early spring or autumn. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Incarvillea+delavayi>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]Famine Foods listed in the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. — Reid. B. E. · Southern Materials Centre; Taipei · 1977 · ISBN - ↩︎A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.
  2. [2]Perennials. Volumes 1 and 2. — Phillips. R. & Rix. M. · Pan Books · 1991 · ISBN 0-330-30936-9 ↩︎Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.
  3. [3]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  4. [4]The New Plantsman. Volume 1, 1994. — Matthews. V. · Royal Horticultural Society · 1994 · ISBN 1352-4186 ↩︎A quarterly magazine, it has articles on Himalayacalamus hookerianus, hardy Euphorbias and an excellent article on Hippophae spp.
  5. [5]The Dry Garden. — Chatto. B. · Dent · 1982 · ISBN 0460045512 ↩︎A good list of drought resistant plants with details on how to grow them.
  6. [6]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).