Do we have any Campsis experts in the group?

While driving about yesterday we were admiring the Campsis that are in full
bloom now. When we came to one spectacular fence covered in them I had to
stop to take a closer look. I boldly said that is a Campsis....? I realised
that I was not sure if it was C. grandiflora or C. radicans. I took a leaf
and a flower home and out came the books. The more books I looked in the
more confused I became, as the local plant although similar to those
mentioned in the books was distinctly different. The only way to settle it
was to look at the two plants that are in my garden, which are C. radicans
that I bought from reliable sources in the U.K. On close examination the
leaves were different from each other and different from the local one.

I will describe the plants in detail.

Plant 1. (local) A large bold plant with dark green pinnate leaves which
have 9-13 leaflets 8 cm long. The leaflets are coarsely toothed and glabrous
beneath. The terminal clusters of spectacular flame red trumpet shaped
flowers flare open to 8 cm across and up to 10 cm long. They are deeply five
lobed. The clusters are held horizontally.

Plant 2. Less strong growing than above. The pale green pinnate leaves have
9-11 leaflets 10 cm long. The leaflets are coarsly toothed and glabrous
beneath with a 1-2 cm petiole. The leaflets on plant 1 do not have a
petiole. There is no sign of flower yet but I remember it having flowers
similar to the above but smaller.

Plant 3. Similar in vigour to No 2. Leaves similar but softer and slightly
tomentose beneath. The smaller terminal clusters of flowers are just
appearing and are similar to No 2.

The leaves of No 1 look similar to the photograph of C. grandiflora in
Tropica by Graf but nothing like that of C. grandiflora in Hugo Latymer's
Mediterranean Gardener.  So, do we have any Campsis experts in the group,
who can help me identify the local plant?
----  David Sturge  ----  dpsgkp@mail.telepac.pt  ----
Tel/Fax +351 89 992849    or dps@delcam.com
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