This week, I pruned my two pots of Double Blue Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) (Fig. 1 and 2), which I briefly mentioned in my 30 August post. As expected, the plants were heavily infested with spider mites (family Tetranychidae). My previous experience with this climber had taught me how susceptible it is to these pests. After my last Butterfly Pea died years ago, the mite problem put me off growing another until recently.

Fig. 1: Dense foliage of Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) before pruning.	Fig. 2: Bare stems of Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) after pruning.

As the infestation worsens, the leaves begin to lose colour, and tiny black or brown specks—the microscopic spider mites—appear on their undersides (Fig. 3). The mites then spread to other plants sharing the pot. This time, the Root Beer Plant (Senega paniculata) was the worst affected, developing the same leaf discolouration and accumulation of mites underneath (Fig. 4). Interestingly, the Sesame plant (Sesamum indicum) and Bladder Cherry (Physalis angulata) in the neighbouring pot remained unaffected.

Fig. 3: Decolouration of the leaf of Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) and spider mites on its leaf.		Fig. 4: Decolouration of the leaf of Root Beer Plant (Senega paniculata) and spider mites on its leaf.

Although I have grown Butterfly Pea before, this is my first time growing a double-flowered form (Fig. 5). NParks’ Flora & Fauna Web lists it as Clitoria ternatea var. pleniflora, while Plants of the World Online treats that name as a synonym of Clitoria ternatea. The variants differ mainly in flower colour—primarily purple, blue, pink or white [1]—and whether their flower petals are single or double.

Fig. 5: Double petal flowers	Fig. 6: Seedling	Fig. 7: Seed pods

I previously struggled to germinate Butterfly Pea seeds directly in soil. After seeing a video demonstrating germination in moist tissue paper, I tried the method, and the seeds germinated easily within two days. I then transferred the newly emerged seedlings to soil (Fig. 6) to continue growing.

I planted the four seedlings in pots in mid-July, and the first flower opened in mid-August, just over a month later. The plants went on to produce many flowers but surprisingly few pods—only nine in total (Fig. 7)—suggesting a low fertilisation rate. A 2024 article from Indonesia [2] noted that “double-petal plants are known for their reduced pollen fertility and challenges in pod formation”. I did not collect the flowers this time, but plan to harvest them in the next cycle, once the plants produce new shoots and bloom again.

References:

[1] Wati SI, Samanhudi S, Yuniastuti E, Purwanto E. Genetic characterization of butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) with different flower colors and petal types using SRAP markers. Biodiversitas 2025;26:3722-3730. | Read article |

[2] Batu TAL, Sitanggang KD, Saragih SHY, Sepriani Y. Morphological diversity of double Petal Telang (Clitoria ternatea L.) in several flower colors. Juatika 2024;6(2):386-392. | Read article |