Coleus is a popular indoor plant for its colorful leaves and flowers and its low maintenance. If you want to decorate your house or office room with colorful plants, coleus is the best. It has beautiful flowers. Its flower color is sometimes white, sometimes blue, and sometimes purple. It has different colors of foliage like green, yellow, pink, red, and maroon. Coleus will fascinate you with its beauty. You can easily take care of your lovely coleus and enjoy the beauty of coleus without hard work. To enjoy the beauty of coleus, you should follow some tips such as:
| Common Name | Coleus |
| Botanical Name | Plectranthus scutellarioides |
| Family | Lamiaceae |
| Plant Type | Perennial, herbaceous |
| Mature Size | 6–36 in. tall and wide |
| Sun Exposure | Partial |
| Soil Type | Moist but well-drained |
| Soil pH | Acidic, neutral |
| Bloom Time | Summer, fall |
| Flower Color | Blue, white |
| Toxicity | Toxic to pets |
Providing Adequate Lighting
Light is a very important element for every plant. Coleus is no exception. Coleus can grow in both shade and direct sunlight. Lighting needs to be arranged according to the type of coleus. Newer coleus can live in more light, but older coleus can’t tolerate too much light. It likes to grow in low light. So first, take a look at what kind of coleus you have—old or new. Then arrange the lighting accordingly.
Put Them in a Right Place
Since newer coleus needs direct sunlight and older coleus needs indirect sunlight, keep it in the right place according to the type of coleus. When you bring a newer coleus, you should keep it in a place where sunlight comes in directly. And when you bring an older coleus, you should keep it in a place where sunlight comes in indirectly. For newer coleus, a balcony is the perfect place. You can also place them near a window where sunlight comes in directly. You can place the older coleus in the corner of your room or any bright place. You must be aware of placing your coleus in the right place.
Provide Them Sufficient Water
Sufficient water is very important for your coleus because not all plants accept the same quantity of water. Coleus needs a small amount of water. You should water your plant when the soil is dry. Basically, coleus needs not very wet but moist and well-drained soil.
Coleus can also live in water without soil, but it can only survive for one year in water. For growing it in water, you should use a container full of water. You should also change the water every 2 or 3 days and clean the container regularly.
Give Them Fertilizer
Fertilizer is very important for your plant to grow well, make it healthy, remove pests and insects, and also help with flowering. Not all seasons are perfect for fertilizing. The growing seasons are perfect for fertilizing—spring and summer. So, you should use fertilizer in the spring and summer seasons. Winter is the rest time for plants, so you should avoid using fertilizer in winter.
For higher foliage growth, you can use a higher ratio of nitrogen. For healthy stems, you can use fertilizer with a higher ratio of magnesium and potassium. Coleus is a flowering plant, so you can use fertilizer with more phosphorus. This will help your plant stay healthy, alive, and vibrant.
Coleus Pruning
Pruning is very important for coleus. It helps your plant grow quickly and make new stems and leaves. It also helps your plant look good. Prune your lovely coleus in summer and spring because summer and spring are the growing seasons. Growing seasons are best for pruning. For pruning your plant, you should use your hands and scissors. Remove damaged leaves and cut longer stems and leaves for appearance.
Free from Insects
Coleus is generally less affected by insects and diseases. Even then, you may see aphids, mealybugs, spider mites, whiteflies, etc. To remove this problem, you can use Savlon water. First, take some water in a bottle and mix Savlon in it. Then spray the Savlon water on your plant’s leaves and stems. You can also use a clove of garlic in your plant’s soil to help.
Coleus Propagation
You can easily propagate your coleus in two ways: cutting stems and using seeds.
1. Cutting Stems
In this method, you should choose a healthy stem. After choosing a stem, cut the leaves from it and plant it in moist soil. Finally, put the pot in a bright, sunny place. Then wait for a few days and see the result.
2. Growing from Seeds
First, take a container with holes, then add moist and well-drained soil. Sprinkle the seeds into the container’s soil and place it in a bright, sunny place. Always keep the soil moist. After waiting two to three weeks, you will see sprouts.
Temperature and Humidity
Coleus always likes high temperatures; for this reason, it prefers the summer season. Coleus does not like winters much due to the low temperature.
Coleus also likes high humidity. The plants benefit from extra humidity, so keep a sufficient amount of humidity in your room.
Solving Any Other Problems
While taking care of it, you may face some other problems such as:
1. Roots Rot
Root rot happens when you give your plant too much water. So stop overwatering your plants.
2. Yellow Leaves
Yellow leaves are also caused by overwatering. It can also be caused by using too much fertilizer. As the saying goes, “Excess of anything is bad.” So you should maintain balance. When you see yellow leaves, stop overwatering and reduce fertilizing.
3. Plants Wilting
This problem is more common when you start caring for your plant without knowing its type. These plants need to be taken care of depending on the type. Older plants need indirect sunlight, and newer plants need direct sunlight. If you give the older plants direct sunlight and the newer plants indirect sunlight, wilting may occur. So to avoid plant wilting, you should know the type of plant and take care of it accordingly.
Finally, it can be said that coleus is one of the most beautiful indoor flowering plants. It is also a low-maintenance plant. You can easily take care of it by following these tips and enjoy its beauty.
