(AKA Atropurpurea Periwinkle/Myrtle)

Vinca minor ’Atropurpurea’ is an evergreen trailing vine with shiny green 1/2" x 1 1/2" leaves. It’s nearly the same as the regular vinca that we all know and love, but the flowers are a stunning bright plum-purple and seem to float above the dark green foliage, adding brighter hues to the typically pastel spring landscape.

Although the major blooming season for Vinca is early Spring, ’Atropurpurea’ continues blooming sporadically throughout the Summer and into first frost. Lovely in combination with white or light yellow daffodils; great for the shade garden and under rhododendrons!

Like most Vinca vines it will produce fewer blooms in deep shade, so if you can give it partial shade it will be happiest. Prefers shade in zones 7 - 8, must have shade in zone 9; tolerates full sun with regular watering in zones 4 - 6.

It will fill a space faster if grown in organic, moist, well-drained loamy soil, but it will also grow quite well in heavy clay as long as it gets adequate moisture. Spreads quickly once established.

Deer tend to avoid, tolerant of infrequent foot traffic. Caution: invasive, should only be used in contained areas. Mature prostrate height 4" - 6", spacing 10" - 15".

Vinca (from Latin vincire "to bind, fetter") is a genus of five species of in the family Apocynaceae, native to Europe, northwest Africa and southwest Asia. The common name, shared with the related genus Catharanthus, is Periwinkle.

They are subshrubs or herbaceous, and have slender trailing stems 1-2 m long but not growing more than 20-70 cm above ground; the stems frequently take root where they touch the ground, enabling the plant to spread widely. The leaves are opposite, simple broad lanceolate to ovate, 1-9 cm long and 0.5-6 cm broad.

The flowers, produced through most of the year, are salverform (like those of Phlox), simple, 2.5-7 cm broad, with five petals joined together at the base to form a tube. The fruit consists of a group of divergent follicles; a dry fruit which is dehiscent along one rupture site in order to release seeds.