Plant Story

Do not let the rare appearance of this passion flower fool you — though it looks like a young tree, it is actually a wooden vine. The species itself acts as a host for several butterfly species as they develop. This colorful plant posts white petals with an orange crown and mid-sized green fruits. Passiflora pittieri grows in mature, humid and rainy forests and can be found in Belize, Guatemala and from Nicaragua to Ecuador. In Costa Rica, the species grows on both the Atlantic and Pacific slopes.