19. Ipomoea hederacea Jacquin, Collecteana. 1: 124, plate 36. 1787; Icon. Pl. Rar., plate 36. 1787.
[F W]
Ivy-leaf morning glory
Ipomoea hederacea var. integriuscula A. Gray; Pharbitis barbigera (Sweet) G. Don
Annuals. Stems twining. Leaf blades ± orbiculate, ovate, or 3–5-lobed, not palmatisect, 50–120 × 50–120 mm, base cordate, basal lobes ± pointed, surfaces hairy. Peduncles hairy, hairs retrorse. Flowers: sepals ± lanceolate, 12–24 mm, herbaceous, proximally ovate, abruptly narrowed to ± curved or spreading distal portion notably longer than dilated base, abaxial surface, at least proximal 1/3, hirsute to hispid; corolla light blue, tube white or pale yellow inside, funnelform, 20–37(–45) mm, limb 17–35 mm diam. 2n = 30.
Flowering May–Nov. Abandoned plantings, disturbed sites, gravel bars, roadsides; 10–1900 m; Ont.; Ala., Ariz., Ark., Calif., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Nebr., N.H., N.J., N.Mex., N.Y., N.C., N.Dak., Ohio, Okla., Pa., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Tex., Va., W.Va., Wis.; Mexico; South America; introduced in Europe, Africa, Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia.
Leaf shape in Ipomoea hederacea, and, perhaps, in other ipomoeas, is under simple genetic control and is useless for recognition of varieties (C. D. Elmore 1986).
