Mandevilla

I was looking for a flower with a classical conformation having blooms with a trumpet shape to use as a prop in filming the hummingbirds. The Mandevilla was almost the first plant I laid eyes on at the nursery and it was a deep red to boot, a color I felt sure would be attractive to the hummingbirds.

Waiting on the hummingbirds gave me plenty of time to view this lovely tropical flower under many different lighting conditions. It was totally captivating and I almost couldn't help myself taking one photo after another.

There were times when the lighting would ignite only the trumpet and not the petals. The trumpet interior is an orange-red rather than the deep red of the petals themselves and, at times, it was as though a light were turned on.  The deep red is the kind that changes to a blackish-red like a red velvet.

The Mandevilla wasn't as attractive to the hummingbirds as I had hoped. They would work it over occasionally, but not nearly as often as I thought they would. Some days, they didn't even go near it.

I would take it in at night because I didn't want them working it over before I was ready to film and becoming so familiar with the flower that they wouldn't go near it, but I'm not sure that worked.

The blossoms are very long lasting. It is a tropical plant and is not hardy outdoors in zones north of Florida. I'll have to see if I can overwinter it indoors and enjoy it again next year.