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.
Canines and purple queen plant toxicity
Purple Heart, also known as Tradescantia pallida, is a wonderful and vibrant houseplant. It comes from Eastern Mexico and can be grown as a trailing plant or as a ground cover. It is ideal for hanging baskets and can trail for up to 2 feet. The leaves are slender and pointed, measuring 2 to 5 inches long. The bottoms of the leaves are a deep purple color, and the tops vary in color from green to purple. Along the leaves, they have tiny translucent hairs as well.
Low light is acceptable, but it may cause the leaves to become more green. thrives in indirect light that is medium to bright and has some morning sun.
Before watering, allow the top inch of soil to dry off. To prevent root rot, water till it emerges from the drainage hole gently and evenly.
Home humidity ranges from average to high. When the air is too dry, the tips become brown.
Additional Care: The thin stems and leaves are easily snapped. Keep it in a hanging basket or any other secure location. Trim if it’s becoming too lanky or to encourage bushier growth. Steer clear of drafts.
Benefits of purple heart plant
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.
Does purple heart grow indoors?
A fast-growing member of the spiderwort family with dark purple leaves and long purple stems is the purple heart plant (Tradescantia pallida), also known as purple secretia or purple queen. Although the plants also produce tiny pink and purple flowers, it’s the leaves that really stand out.
Plants with purple hearts have several uses. It works well as a trailing border around rock gardens and other enclosed garden settings, as well as a ground cover to provide a pop of foliage and bloom color to your landscaping. It will also flourish in a hanging basket indoors or outdoors or in a planter on the patio.
The native Mexican plant known as the purple heart was previously classified under the genus Setcreasea pallida, but a botanist at the Royal Botanic Garden Kew changed its classification to Tradescantia in 1975. The plant is still frequently referred to by its previous names, S. pallida or S. purpurea.
Where should a purple heart plant be placed?
Tradescantia pallida is a delicate evergreen perennial grown as an ornamental for its eye-catching purple foliage. It is native to northeast Mexico, from Tamaulipas to Yucatan. Joseph Nelson Rose gave it the name Setcreasea pallida in 1911, but D.R. Hunt of the Royal Botanic Garden Kew classed it in the genus Tradescantia in 1975. S. pallida or S. purpurea, the former names, are still frequently used.
This herbaceous plant in the Commelinaceae (spiderwort family) is a low-growing trailer that is commonly known as purple heart or purple heart wandering jew (and occasionally “Moses in the Basket, although this usually refers to a different species). It is hardy in zones 7 through 10, but it is easily grown as an annual or houseplant in colder climates.
On thick stalks, dark purple, lance-shaped leaves up to 7 long are produced alternately. The fleshy leaves create a sheath around the stem and are covered in light hairs. The stems are exceedingly delicate and can snap off when brushed or vigorously kicked. It will wither down to the ground in the winter in colder climates, but in the spring it will reappear from the roots. The sprawling plants can extend much farther and grow to a height of nearly a foot.
At the ends of the stems, relatively unnoticeable pink or pale purple blooms with vivid yellow stamens appear from midsummer through fall, as well as intermittently at other seasons. The three petals on these half-inch broad blooms are characteristic for this genus.
Purple heart can be grown as a houseplant, as a ground cover, as a trailer in a variety of containers, or cascading in baskets. They spread rather quickly and work best when planted in large groups in the ground. The purple foliage complements other plants’ pink, light purple, or burgundy blossoms beautifully and contrasts well with their gold, chartreuse, or variegated leaves. For striking combos, use it with complementing hues. scarlet begonias, orange marigolds, or chartreuse coleus.
Try putting it in a container with golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ or other types), Marguerite beautiful sweet potatoes, or light green asparagus fern. Alternately, pair it with coral-colored scarlet sage (Salvia coccinea ‘Coral Nymph’), pink petunias, or lavender or pink verbena. Four o’clocks (Mirabilis jalapa), lantana, scaveola, vinca (Catharantheus roseus), and Mexican petunia are other recommendations for plants with pink or purple flowers (Ruellia brittonia).
For best color development, cultivate purple heart in full sun; plants grown in shadow tend to be more green than purple. Plants can grow more compactly if you pinch them. Plants can withstand drought and grow when neglected, but they also accept constant watering. When you are actively growing, fertilize every month. After flowering, prune plants to keep them from becoming spindly. Reduce watering throughout the winter and hold off on fertilizing houseplants or those grown in containers to be kept indoors during the winter. Scales and mealybugs can be a nuisance, but purple heart has few other pests. Some people and dogs may have skin redness and irritation from the juice from the leaves or stems, but this is not a frequent issue.
Simply push a node into the soil or potting mix to get a cutting from any section of the plant to root, and plants can be readily propagated (or place in water until roots develop). This plant can also be grown from seed, however that material is infrequently accessible.
Is the purple heart plant an outdoor or interior plant?
I’ve addressed some of the most frequent queries about purple heart plant maintenance in this article. Please add it to the comments box below if yours isn’t already there.
Why is my purple heart plant dying?
Your purple heart plant is dying for a number of different reasons. Common causes include inconsistent watering (often too much), a lack of sunlight, or low conditions.
Is the purple heart plant indoor or outdoor?
Given the right conditions, the purple heart plant can be successfully grown both inside and outside. In colder climates, it should be kept inside, but in warmer ones, it can spend the entire year outside.
Knowing how simple it is to cultivate, the eye-catching purple heart plant can be a lovely addition to your house or yard. To enjoy Tradescantia pallida for many years to come, use these care suggestions.
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What functions does purple heart serve?
Purpleheart is highly regarded for its usage in exquisite inlay work, particularly on musical instruments, guitar fret boards (albeit infrequently), woodturning, cabinets, flooring, and furniture. Additionally, it is employed in a variety of woodworking hobbies, including the creation of jewelry boxes, pens, bowls, and bottle stoppers. [6] The wood is also useful for applications that call for durability, such truck decking. [7]
There are several difficulties with Purpleheart in the woodshop. Working with hand tools, chiseling, and carving implements is difficult due to the difficult-to-detect interlocking grain. However, woodturners can observe that it turns cleanly and sands easily when using sharp tools. [6]
Due to the presence of dalbergione (neoflavonoid) chemicals in the wood, exposure to the dust created by cutting and sanding purpleheart can cause skin, eye, and respiratory irritation as well as nausea[6]. Additionally, because to this, most people find purpleheart wood inappropriate for use in jewelry. [8] Because purpleheart is a pricey wood, it is typically used in smaller-scale constructions. [9]
The maximum size of purple heart plants
Pink blooms are produced by the trailing perennial “Purple Heart” in the summer. It has violet-purple leaves and purple stems. This plant is primarily grown for its foliage, which can grow to a length of 7 inches. For the greatest color, place the plant in direct sunlight with a dry, confined root zone. It works well in hanging baskets, containers, and as a groundcover. It expands to a 16-inch width and 8–12-inch height.
Care
Provide a sunny location with wet soil. Pinch to promote bushiness, and after flowering, prune flower stalks. When there is active growth, water sparingly and fertilize every month.
Propagation
Cut stem tips that are 2 to 3 inches long, place in soil mixture or water, and pot up.
How frequently should a purple heart plant be watered?
Purple heart is fairly drought-tolerant once planted, but if it receives regular summer water, it will appear cleaner and more lush. From spring till fall, water it once a week with an inch of water. To keep the roots healthy, let the soil surface dry out in between waterings. Increase watering to twice weekly during periods of high heat or drought if the soil is drying out sooner than usual. In the winter, cut back on watering to once every two weeks, and avoid providing any during rainy weather. Purple hearts growing in pots should also be watered if the top layer of soil becomes dry. Fill the pot with water until the extra drains out of the drainage holes. Always use pots with drainage holes for this plant.
Purple Hearts last how long?
Tender perennial Tradescantia pallida ‘Purple Heart’ is frequently grown as a houseplant or as an annual. With purple stems that trail, violet-purple foliage, and summer-blooming pink flowers. It usually only grows once a year, however in protected regions or during mild winters, it might. For outdoor planting, choose a spot with full sun to moderate shade and well-drained, high-organic soil that maintains a consistent moisture level. The best color development will result from direct sunlight. Plants grown in shaded areas have a tendency to lean more green. Every flower has a one-day lifespan. As an ornamental ground cover or bedding plant, it has recently been grown outside. It thrives longer than most bedding plants and has a propensity to spread aggressively in beds.
Use it in hanging baskets or pots, or as an edging plant in rock gardens or borders. Back off to promote bushiness. coveted for its vibrant and distinctive purple stems, leaves, and quick growth. It is frequently planted indoors as a groundcover or in hanging baskets for interiorscapes.
Insects, diseases, and other plant issues: There aren’t any major issues, however aphids, vine weevils, scale insects, and mealybugs are drawn to the plants. Caterpillars, slugs, and snails can eat outside plants.
Although it is uncommon, the juice from the leaves and stems can occasionally make people’s and dogs’ skin red and irritated.