The Texas Cooperative Extension and Texas A&M University employ horticulturists who are in the business of assisting individuals in effectively growing plants and discovering delight and fulfillment in the process. In order to achieve this, we select the best plant species for Texas’s many climates, make them widely available to consumers, and respond to inquiries about the best ways to cultivate plants there. By having to endorse only procedures that have been tried and proven successful, we are “burdened. We feel personally obligated to only suggest workable, efficient solutions. These methods might go against the “feel good answers” promoted by some radio garden show hosts who incessantly accuse anyone and everyone of mismanaging the environment when they suggest or use a “man-made petro-chemical solution to a problem. This is, to put it mildly, hypocritical because these people who are protesting man-made chemicals depend on them for their own survival, and they will continue to do so unless they quit consuming all forms of manufactured medicine and just consume the food they grow.
When used as intended and per the instructions on the product labels, glyphosate—also marketed as Roundup, Glyphosate, and Ortho Kleanup—is an efficient and safe chemical. The least harmful of all the pesticides is glyphosate. This fact was established when 20 disgruntled employees of the glyphosate production plant made the decision to allege negative side effects of the product’s production. Each of these 20 workers drank a pint of pure glyphosate to show just how dangerous this deadly substance may be. Unfortunately for the process of natural selection of the species, only two of the twenty malcontents became ill as a result of this reckless deed; the other eighteen became incredibly dependable in their bathroom usage! But who made headlines? The two patients—you guessed it—were hospitalized
If not removed within 30 minutes, these products KILL WHAT THEY TOUCH. It follows that invasive plants can be destroyed without harming non-target plants. This method has been applied against bamboo, woody plant systems, and patches of nutsedge that are growing in attractive vegetation. When it comes into contact with the earth, it deactivates yet continues to kill anything it touches. There is a bacteria in the soil that adores it and practically eats it up, especially in the South Texas alkaline soils.
Glyphosate is a systemic killer that enters the system of the plant and destroys it from the roots up. This kill takes place without harming the plant’s root system or digging it up. The beneficial mycorrhizal fungi are also destroyed when weeds and grass are physically dug out, according to Dr. Don Marks, a well-known expert on the soil microorganism mycorrhizae. The host plant stops transmitting carbohydrates before it dies when herbicides like glyphosate are employed, alerting the fungal to quickly build spores or “seeds for its survival.” The natural and organic mycorrhizae are more threatened by clearing weeds and grass than by glyphosate herbicides.
The fact that glyphosate does not effectively eradicate many woody and succulent plants is considered both good and bad news by some. This implies that you can spray it around shrubs, Asian Jasmine, Turk’s cap, cactus, and Purple Heart (also known as Purple Wandering Jew) without burning the foliage or harming the plant in any way, unless it’s the young, sensitive foliage of jasmine. This indicates that you could eliminate undesirable grass and weeds from the aforementioned plants without seriously harming them. Commercial asparagus growers in California use glyphosate to kill invasive weeds and grasses like bermudagrass because the thin asparagus leaves do not absorb the chemical.
How can the spread of the purple heart be stopped?
Let’s talk about purple heart plant care now that you know where you should cultivate them. Use these suggestions to maintain its health year after year.
Light
Purple queen plants require a lot of light to keep the vibrant color, which can be the most difficult aspect of caring for them.
The majority of the day should ideally be spent in the sun for them, while in really hot regions, some shade can keep them from burning.
Even at a window with sunshine, it might be difficult to provide them with enough light indoors. With eight or more hours each day, they’ll work at their best. Add a grow light as a supplement if you see the color fading or the plants looking sluggish.
Water
Tradescantia pallida is moderately drought tolerant once established, but it struggles under prolonged dryness.
Water deeply when the top few inches of soil are dry to promote hardier roots but avoid making the soil soggy. You can get it just right with the use of a cheap moisture gauge.
They will require more frequent watering during heat waves or full sun. They will require far less over the winter.
Keep them evenly moist indoors, and always drain off any extra water to prevent overwatering.
Humidity
Outside, humidity is usually not a problem, but if the leaves of your indoor purple queen plant are limp or brown from drying out, it may require extra humidity.
To boost the humidity in your house, place them on a tray of pebbles or keep a small humidifier running close by.
Temperature
A purple heart plant thrives in typical home temperatures. They can survive in temperatures as low as 40F and thrive in the 60 to 80F range outdoors.
After a light cold, the leaves may wither, but as long as the ground doesn’t freeze, it will grow back in the spring.
However, a plant that is repeatedly exposed to freezing temperatures will eventually die, roots and all.
Fertilizer
Although fertilizing a purple queen plant is not essential to their upkeep, the infrequent feeding can rekindle growth, improve flowering, and intensify the colors.
They will benefit from a balanced houseplant formula when used indoors, or you can utilize all-purpose products like compost tea or fish emulsion when used outside.
During the spring and summer, use liquid or slow-release granules up to once a month.
In the fall and winter, stop fertilizing and steer clear of chemical brands that could hurt or burn the plant.
Soil
The ideal soil for purple heart plants is one that is light, loamy, and well-drained. To boost organic matter in outdoor beds, you can add peat moss or compost. Sand can also be added to improve drainage.
A high-quality general potting soil can be used indoors. However, you may also add perlite or pumice to it to improve drainage and lower the chance of overwatering.
Repotting
Even though purple heart plants can only reach a specific height, with the right care, they can quickly fill a container.
Size up when roots start to protrude from the drainage holes. Prior to flowering in the spring is the ideal time to do it.
Replant it at the same depth in a container with drainage holes that is 1-2 larger than the existing one.
Pruning
Pruning is an essential component of caring for purple queen plants both inside and outside due to their spreading propensity.
To promote branching in the spring, pinch off new stems as they emerge, or use sharp pruners to give it a hard trim once flowering is ended.
Up to 50% of the total size can be pruned, which will provide more dense growth throughout the summer.
Pest Control Tips
Generally speaking, healthy purple hearts are pest-free, but occasionally you could run into a problem.
Snails and caterpillars can be a problem outside. Control them by manually picking them off, or create a barrier around the base using diatomaceous earth.
Scale and mealybugs are more likely to be found indoors. For optimal effects, treat them right away with rubbing alcohol, neem oil, or an insecticidal soap.
With 1 liter of water and 1 teaspoon of mild liquid soap, you can produce your own insecticide spray.
Purple Hearts: Are they invasive?
A popular variety of spiderwort used in landscaping, particularly as ground cover, is called purple heart. It has remarkable lance-shaped leaves with pigmentations of deep purple. The flower has three petals, is tiny, and is a light lavender or pink tint. Purple Heart is a kind of perennial evergreen.
Despite being widely used in landscaping, Purple Heart may be found in most temperate regions. However, the plant is native to the Gulf region of Eastern Mexico. It is frequently seen as invasive in many places.
Purple Heart is exceptional since it is a powerful plant for cleansing the air. Purple Heart was found to be the most successful at removing Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from indoor air in a study involving 28 different plant species. Paint is just one of the many popular home furnishings that emit hazardous VOCs. This demonstrates that Purple Heart, when grown indoors, has the potential to offer significant health advantages to individuals. Phytoremediation is the process by which plants remove pollutants from the air.
Purple Heart grows very easily from plant cuttings, making it particularly simple to propagate when used as a houseplant. Cuttings from it should be disposed of carefully since if they are left on the ground, they will encourage invasive growth. They are sterile blooms.
Several common names for T. pallida exist, including as Purple Heart, Wandering Jew, Inch Plant, and Purple Queen. Setcreasea pallida and S. purpurea are two other names for it that are recognized by science.
The violet tint on the foliage is stunning. The pigment will become darker in direct sunshine for an even more dramatic appearance.
Do plants with purple hearts return each year?
When grown outdoors in USDA hardiness zones 711, the colorful purple heart plant is an evergreen perennial with a year-round growing season. In northern locations, it will wither away during the winter months due to the freezing weather, but the roots will survive, and new purple stems will emerge in the early spring. In warm areas, blooming occurs from late spring to early October.
Plant purple hearts where there is direct sunlight to promote vibrant purple foliage. Even in partial shade, the plant will continue to develop, but since there won’t be as much light, it will appear greener with less purple hints. When cultivating the purple heart as a container plant indoors or outdoors, pick a container with drainage holes and use all-purpose potting soil.
Can a chopped purple heart grow back?
If you’re giving the plant to a novice gardener, label the bag with the recipient’s name, the date the plant was cut, and some basic propagation instructions.
Tip
When growing purple heart plants, it’s easy to propagate cuttings by placing them straight in wet potting or garden soil and maintaining them there until new growth appears. Take cuttings from outdoor plants in the spring or summer and from indoor purple heart plants whenever they are actively growing.
Warning
In some areas, purple heart plant is regarded as invasive, and residents of those areas should dispose of surplus plant material carefully because it frequently roots in the places where it is dropped.
Do dogs eat purple hearts poisonously?
The purple stems of the purple heart (Tradescantia pallida), which bear delicate little clusters of violet to pink flowers, are well named. Although this fast-growing plant has distinctive blooms, many gardeners choose it for its vivid leaves instead. Although the stems and upper leaf surfaces appear to be a deep royal purple color, they may also contain lighter turquoise-gray hues that get darker as the foliage ages. This sprawling, long-jointed shrub is the perfect groundcover for anyone who enjoys purple landscaping.
It is raised as an evergreen perennial in warm regions, giving your yard an annual splash of stunning purple color. Tradescantia pallida is grown as an annual in colder areas. As a houseplant, it is also commonly advertised for sale.
Purple heart is harmful to humans and toxic to pets, producing contact dermatitis, same like other Tradescantia species.
Will Purple Queen return annually?
What This Plant Is In moderate winter regions of the country where temperatures hardly ever drop below 32F for extended periods of time, this plant can be utilized as a tender perennial (returning year after year). Plants can be dug up, potted, and moved indoors to overwinter in extremely cold climates before being replanted the following year.