Eccremocarpus is a small genus of climbing plants in the family Bignoniaceae, placed within tribe Tourrettieae. It comprises a handful of species (Wikipedia lists five; the GBIF backbone recognizes eight descendant taxa) of evergreen, semi-woody vines that climb by means of tendrils and grow to roughly 1–7 m in height.
The genus is native to western South America, occurring in Chile, western Argentina, and Peru, where its species grow in the temperate and subtropical vegetation of the Andean region.
By far the best-known and most widely grown member of the genus is Eccremocarpus scaber, commonly called the Chilean glory flower, native to Chile and western Argentina. It is cultivated as an ornamental vine for its clusters of small, tubular orange-red flowers. Because it is not reliably winter-hardy in cool temperate climates, it is frequently grown there as a fast-growing annual rather than a perennial.
Distribution
Native to western South America, spanning Chile, western Argentina, and Peru.
Taxonomy Notes
Placed in family Bignoniaceae, tribe Tourrettieae, order Lamiales; described by Ruiz & Pavón in 1794 (Prod. 90, t. 18). Source counts of species vary: Wikipedia lists five species, while the GBIF backbone records eight descendant taxa.
Cultivation
Eccremocarpus scaber (Chilean glory flower) is grown as an ornamental for its attractive tubular flowers. It is not winter-hardy in cool temperate regions and is commonly grown there as an annual.
