USDA Hardiness Zone. Climbing butterfly pea is a beautiful flower grown in 9-11(USDA). Planting time. You can plant seeds directly in the garden in spring or by starting them indoors about 12 weeks ahead of time. Sow. Prepare seeds by lightly scratching the surface with a nail file and soak them overnight in water. Sow directly in the garden with 3–4 inch spacing when the soil warms in the spring. Seeds will germinate in 1-2 weeks. Sun. Let the sun shine on your butterfly pea plant. This plant needs lots of bright, full sunlight — at least six to eight hours each day. Watering. Keep it moist while it's growing, but don't overwater. Once it's established, it becomes drought tolerant. Clitoria ternatea, commonly known as Asian pigeonwings, bluebellvine, blue pea, butterfly pea, cordofan pea or Darwin pea is a plant species belonging to the family Fabaceae. Spurred butterfly pea vines, climbing butterfly pea, or wild blue vine, butterfly pea (Centrosema virginianum) is a trailing vine that produces pinkish-blue or violet blooms in spring and summer. It is a perennial herbaceous plant, with elliptic, obtuse leaves. It grows as a vine or creeper, doing well in moist, neutral soil. Its most striking feature is the color of its flowers, a vivid deep blue; solitary, with light yellow markings. They are about 4 cm (1+1⁄2 in) long by 3 cm (1+1⁄4 in) wide. Some varieties yield white flowers. The fruits are 5–7 cm (2–2+3⁄4 in) long, flat pods with six to ten seeds in each pod. They are edible when tender.