Marin County’s western morning-glories, Calystegia purpurata and Calystegia occidentalis
by Doreen Smith
Plants of the month include Calystegia purpurata and Calystegia occidentalis, two western morning-glory species. Already I have seen Calystegia purpurata flowering on a chain-link fence by the northbound San Rafael Highway 101 exit. Mostly the flowers of this species are white with purple lines, fading to pink, but some plants have pink flowers from the begining and fade almost red-purple. This gives the reason for the Latin specific epithet.