WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Petrea volubilis, WUCOLS IV

How often to water queen's wreath in California

In July on the north-central coast, established queen's wreath in loam needs a deep watering about every 13 days: about 2.2 gallons each time for a plant 2 feet across, about 1.1 gallons a week. Queen's wreath is a twining tropical vine with rough, sandpaper leaves and foot-long sprays of violet star flowers that recall wisteria. The true flowers drop in days, but the purple star-shaped calyces hang on for weeks. It wants regular water through the warm months and soil that drains well.

VineRated for 3 of 6 zones

How often to water queen's wreath, month by month

Your city
Plant width
2 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for queen's wreath and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 3 to 4 inches down at the base of the vine during warm months means it is time for a deep soak
  • Rough leaves drooping in the afternoon, with dry soil at the base, point to a thirsty vine
  • A vine left almost leafless right after its first big spring bloom is following a normal pattern, and new leaves return
  • Leaf drop after a cold winter spell is a response to cold, so feel the soil before adding water
  • Soil still wet a few days after watering means the bed drains poorly, and this vine needs well drained soil

How to water it

  • Keep a new queen's wreath's root ball evenly moist until it settles in, then shift to deeper soaks spaced further apart
  • Water the soil at the base of the support to about 12 inches down, not the leaves up on the trellis
  • Keep lawn grass and its sprinklers away from the vine's root zone
  • Plant in fertile, well drained soil in full sun or light shade, next to a sturdy fence or pergola
  • Mulch the root zone and widen the watered area as the vine thickens at the base

Through the seasons

Water a new queen's wreath often through its first year while its roots settle, and protect a young plant from frost. Flowers come in waves, mostly from spring into early summer and again from fall into winter. Give it regular water through the warm months. In a mild winter it holds its leaves, while cold weather can strip some or all of them. WUCOLS rates it moderate water on the north-central coast, on the south coast and in South Inland. On the coast, winter rain covers most of the cool months. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the Central Valley. WUCOLS has not evaluated it for the high desert or the low desert.

In pots

Queen's wreath grows well in a large container with a sturdy trellis. Check the mix 2 inches down every few days in warm weather, and daily during South Inland heat. Water until it runs from the drainage holes, then empty the saucer so the roots do not sit wet. Look under the rough leaves of a potted vine for scale and mealybugs. On frosty nights, move a pot under an eave or against a warm wall, since young plants need frost protection. In winter, water only when the mix is dry 2 inches down.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
Not ratedWUCOLS does not rate Queen's Wreath for the Central Valley zone
A year
no figure
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses

WUCOLS lists Queen's Wreath as not suited to this region for the Central Valley zone, so no monthly figure is computed here.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Queen's Wreath: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.37–0.780.78––
Feb0.53–0.810.87––
Mar0.87–1.151.3––
Apr1.18–1.41.61––
May1.46–1.611.95––
Jun1.61–1.742.29––
Jul1.61–1.982.51––
Aug1.49–1.862.33––
Sep1.24–1.491.86––
Oct0.87–1.151.33––
Nov0.47–0.840.9––
Dec0.31–0.650.68––
Year12–15.518.41––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 10

Rated not suited to this region in the Central Valley, like queen's wreath. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Golden Trumpet VineAllamanda catharticanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingPelican FlowerAristolochia giganteanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingWax PlantHoya carnosanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingFlame VinePyrostegia venustanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingCup-of-Gold VineSolandra maximanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingMadagascar JasmineStephanotis floribundanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingBlack-Eyed Susan VineThunbergia alatanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingSky Flower VineThunbergia grandifloranot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingCoral VineAntigonon leptopusnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingBeauverd's Widow's-ThrillKalanchoe beauverdiinot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley rating
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes queen's wreath, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water queen's wreath in summer?

In July, established queen's wreath in loam needs a deep watering about every 11 days on the south coast and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does queen's wreath need per day?

In July on the north-central coast, established queen's wreath needs about 0.2 gallons a day for a plant 2 feet across and about 0.7 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for queen's wreath change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates queen's wreath separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, not suited to this region in the Central Valley zone, moderate water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, not evaluated in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not evaluated in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Why is my queen's wreath not blooming?

A new plant usually takes two or three years to start flowering. It grows best in full sun. Keep up regular warm season water while you wait.

Why did my queen's wreath lose its leaves after blooming?

The first heavy bloom of the season can leave the vine almost bare. This is normal, and the leaves grow back. Keep watering as usual while it releafs, and check that the soil below is dry before each soak.

Does queen's wreath need a trellis?

Yes. It climbs by twining, so give it a sturdy fence, pergola or trellis. In Southern California it can reach about 20 feet with support, but it is often kept smaller as an espalier.

How cold can queen's wreath take?

It does best in nearly frost-free gardens. A plant in a Santa Barbara area nursery garden survived a freeze in the high teens F and held its leaves through nights at 25 degrees F. Young plants are more tender, so cover them on frosty nights.

Can I cut queen's wreath flowers for a vase?

Yes, and they work well in arrangements. Cut each spray right at the base of the cluster. The flowers wilt if a piece of woody vine is left attached.

What pests attack queen's wreath?

It has no serious pest problems. Watch for scale and mealybugs, and less often spider mites. Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds visit the flowers.

More plant watering guides

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Sources