Balloon Vine

Balloon Vine, Cardiospermum corindum

Balloon vine, also known as Heartseed and Love in a Puff, is a continually blooming climbing vine with inflated capsules full of seeds and air giving it its common name. The species Cardiospermum corindum is considered an invasive species with possible exception to a subspecies in southern Florida. It is currently reported to be found in Texas, Florida, and Arizona. Its range includes parts of South America, Central America, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands; however, it can be found in a number of other countries including India and the Galápagos, and there is debate on its native status in Africa. Some of the movement has been purposeful as medicinal and horticultural species while some movement can also be attributed to weather phenomenons such as El Niño.

Tangles of balloon vine found on the edge of a patch of prairie.

Of the Cardiospermum species, the most widespread distributed species are Cardiospermum corindum, C. grandiflorum, and C. halicacabum which has resulted in their native statuses being highly debated. Current research points to C. corindum as possibly being native to both South America and southern Africa. As for its ecological role, balloon vine may play an important part in the life cycle of the endangered Miami blue butterfly. It may also be medicinally important in parts of Africa where the powdered dry roots are boiled and consumed for stomach pains, snake bites, and chronic body discomfort.