Wow is this flower a beauty! It is called Mandevilla.  While the name of this plant is hard enough to remember, it has another name to go by – Diplandenia! I planted this flower in planters by our front door to great our guests. This plant can have red, hot pink, lighter pink or white flowers – of course, I selected hot pink! The Mandevilla plant also comes in a mounding type or a vining type. I picked the mounding Mandevilla. If you pick the vining type you need to be prepared with a trellis. This flowering plant has been very low maintenance – I just give water every day, plant food every few weeks and pluck the flowers as they fade.
Mandevilla is a tropical plant so it likes sunshine.  This means that it is an annual in Pittsburgh, PA. I have two options – I can let it die in the Fall or bring it inside during the winter and take it back out in Summer. I may try keeping it over the winter this year. I will let you know how it works out. Now if my husband ever surprises me with a greenhouse, I could just store my annuals in there!
Not only does the flower look tropical but the leaves do as well. They are a nice glossy green.
My plants came from Costa Farms which I purchased locally at Lowes. I found this plant at many nurseries but I did not want a big gallon pot since I was not sure if it would fit in the planter.  I was quite happy when I finally found two smaller plants (2.5 quarts) at Lowes. Plus this size is cheaper! As you can see they are still growing and doing well!
