Campsis capreolata

Campsis or Bignonia capreolata, also known as Trumpet Vine, is a large climbing plant that is perfectly unique. It blooms from April to July with long trumpets displaying a reddish-orange to copper-coloured throat and a yellow banner. While not spectacular, they release a unique fragrance, blending the round and indulgent notes of chocolate with the more bitter tones of roasted coffee. Its foliage is tough and evergreen in moderately cool climates, with dark green leaves that take on a purple hue in winter. It attaches itself to supports using tendrils equipped with suction cups. It is undemanding in terms of soil type, perfectly resistant to drought, moderately hardy, and will thrive in full sun or partial shade in warm climates.

Bignonia capreolata is another species in the Bignoniaceae family, native to the warm and dry regions of the southeastern United States, from Arkansas to North and South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, and Virginia. It is a fast-growing woody-stemmed evergreen climber that can reach a height of 8 to 10 metres (26 to 33 feet) in a few years, even more in the wild. The plant attaches itself to supports using highly effective branching tendrils equipped with small discs that adhere like suction cups to smooth surfaces. The flowering period is spread out and can start in April in mild climates, continuing until June-July and then resuming in September. The flowers bloom in the axils of the leaves, in dense clusters of elongated trumpets, 5 cm (2in) long, opening into 5 yellow-orange lobes while their tube has a darker colouring, ranging from reddish-orange to copper. Their fragrance is surprising and sweet, evoking both chocolate and coffee, like that of a toffee. The flowering is followed by the formation of 15 cm (6in) long pods containing the seeds. The foliage, normally evergreen, often becomes deciduous in cool climates. It consists of leaves with four leaflets, with the two farthest from the stem forming fine tendrils that allow the plant to cling. The two largest leaves measure about 8 cm (3in) in length. If it persists, the foliage takes on a slightly purple hue in winter. The bark of this vine is a greyish-brown colour and cracks with age.

Campsis or Bignonia capreolata can be used anywhere to cover a wall protected from cold winds, an unsightly building, a south-facing facade, a fence, or a trellis. This plant can tolerate short periods of freezing temperatures around -12°C (10.4°F) but must be protected during the first years of cultivation in cold climates. This is its only requirement and perhaps its only weakness, as it thrives in well-drained and dry soils, even those that are limestone or poor.