Vigna caracalla

This is the plant that Thomas Jefferson described as, “The most beautiful bean in the world”, when he grew it at his Monticello estate over 200 years ago. We couldn’t agree more. The stunning flower clusters of this climbing legume are white to pink-purple and fade to a soft cream. Each bloom’s most astonishing feature, however, is its delicious fragrance. It is literally like perfume. A wealth of confusion exists between Corkscrew Vine and another vine with pale purple and only faintly fragrant flowers. This less favorable vine is often sold as and listed as V. Caracalla in reputable educational resources. After thorough research my belief is that the multi-colored and highly fragrant vine is indeed Vigna Caracalla which is synonymous with Phaseolus Caracalla, and that the pale purple vine is a different species seldom labeled correctly, perhaps Vigna adenantha or Phaseolus giganteus. The name Snail Vine is also used to describe either plant.