Annual Morningglory
Woody or Vine weed
Annual morningglory is a group of fast-growing, twining summer vines in the genus Ipomoea, most often the tall morningglory (Ipomoea purpurea) and the ivyleaf morningglory (Ipomoea hederacea). Gardeners and growers notice it because it climbs and wraps around anything nearby, from crop stems to fences and ornamentals, and because its funnel-shaped flowers make it easy to mistake for a plant someone planted on purpose. It sprouts new from seed every year and can quickly cover a bed, row, or field edge in a single season.
How to identify it
Look for a slender, twining vine that wraps counterclockwise around stems, stakes, and other plants rather than standing upright on its own. The leaves are usually heart-shaped, though ivyleaf morningglory often has three-lobed leaves, and both the stems and leaves are frequently covered in soft hairs. The flowers are the giveaway: showy, funnel- or trumpet-shaped blooms in white, pink, purple, or blue that open in the morning and close by afternoon. It grows from a taproot as a single-season annual and, given something to climb, vines can reach several feet long by late summer.
Where it grows
Annual morningglory thrives in gardens, vegetable beds, row crops, orchards, fencerows, and any disturbed or recently worked soil, and it favors warm weather from late spring through early fall. It reproduces only by seed, and a single plant can produce large numbers of hard-coated seeds that fall near the parent and drop into the soil seed bank. Those seeds can stay viable in the ground for years, sprouting a little at a time whenever the soil is disturbed and warmed, which is why the weed tends to return in the same spots season after season.
Why it is a problem
Because it twines tightly around whatever it touches, annual morningglory competes with garden and crop plants for light, water, and nutrients, and it can pull down or smother young plants as it climbs. In fields it tangles into crops and can foul harvest equipment, while in the garden it quickly overruns beds and trellises meant for other plants. Its long-lived seed bank means even a few plants left to flower can seed a persistent problem for years to come.
How to manage it
The single most effective step is to stop plants from setting seed, so pull or hoe young seedlings while they are small and easy to uproot, ideally before they begin to flower and vine. Hand pulling works well because the taproot lifts readily from moist soil; unwind the vine from any plant it is climbing first so you do not damage your crop. A layer of mulch over cleared beds blocks light and slows new seedlings, and keeping surrounding rows and crops thick and healthy shades the ground so fewer seeds sprout. Since the weed spreads only by seed, staying ahead of it each season and preventing seed drop steadily shrinks the seed bank over time.
Commonly confused with
It is easily confused with field bindweed, a related perennial vine that also has funnel-shaped flowers but bears smaller, usually white or pale pink blooms, hairless arrowhead-shaped leaves, and deep spreading roots rather than a simple annual taproot. It can also be mistaken for ornamental morningglories grown on purpose, since they belong to the same group and look much alike.
General guidance for US lawns and gardens, focused on prevention and non-chemical control. For a confirmed identification and options specific to your area, contact your local Cooperative Extension office. Page updated Aug 4, 2026.