Scientific: Coleus scutellarioides
Common: coleus, painted nettle
Family: Lamiaceae (mint family)
Origin: Native broadly from southeast Asia to Australia including the Bismarck Archipelago, Borneo, Cambodia, Southeast China, Java, Laos, the Lesser Sunda Islands, Peninsular Malaysia, Maluku, Myanmar, Nansei-shoto, New Guinea, Philippines, the Solomon Islands, Sulawesi, Sumatra, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
A taxonomic mind blower: According to the WFO Plant List, there are presently a staggering 102 recognized synonyms of Coleus scutellarioides. The most common of these are Coleus blumei, Plectranthus scutellarioides and Solenostemon scutellarioides.
Pronounciation: Co-LEE-us scu-tel-lar-ee-OYE-dees
Hardiness zones
Sunset All (depending on use)
USDA All (depending on use)
Landscape Use: Coleus is a wonderfully colorful accent plant for landscape borders in mixed filtered to full shade landscape gardens, shaded patio containers, naturally-lighted atriums, indoor house plant for rooms with bright indirect light. In Phoenix, coleus can be grown as either cool season of summer annuals or biennials. Growth outdoors in Phoenix as a perennial is rare.
Form & Character: Upright, mostly symmetrical, bright and cheerful, visually captivating, tender.
Growth Habit: Evergreen, herbaceous, annual or short-lived perennial. Grows grows upright to 3-feet tall with a less than equal spread; however, most cultivated varieties are much shorter in stature.
Foliage/Texture: Opposite, ovate with dentate margins, distinct pinnate veination, occasionally sparsely pubescent. Depending on cultivated variety leaf lamina can be single or multi-colored, color combinations are many ranging from green, white, cream, yellow, pink, red, maroon, to dark purple; medium texture.
Flowers & Fruits: Small, lavender flowers arranged on single stalks that extend above the foliar canopy; fruits insignificant.
Seasonal Color: Brilliant foliar color all year around. The production of anthocyanins and chlorophyll in leaves is positively and negatively correlated, respectively, to light levels, e.g., the more light is present, the more anthocyanins are produced, with an inverse relationship to the production of chlorophyll.
Temperature: Freeze intolerant, but heat tolerant to all but highest Phoenix summer heat (afternoons, temperatures above 112oF).
Light: Filtered to full shade, wholly intolerant of intense full summer sun in Phoenix.
Soil: Well-drained soil with ample organic matter is required.
Watering: Regular supplemental water is absolutely required in Phoenix.
Pruning: Lightly pinch stem terminal buds to induce lateral branching, remove flower stalks if desired, otherwise no pruning is necessary.
Propagation: Easy by seed, but way easier by softwood stem cuttings. If fact, coleus is one of the easiest horticultural plants to asexually propagate by stem cutting.
Disease and Pests: Mealy bugs, especially in protected outdoor and indoor environments.
Additional comments: The foliage color of coleus is so visually captivating that its use/placement in the landscape should be both conservative and well thought out. There are a myriad (as in so many) of coleus cultivated varieties.
