Free Plectranthus Plants

Mona Lavender is one of the most common hybrids of Plectranthus and is a very popular household plant. The plectranthus species of plant has a huge family consisting of around 350 different species. This plant is native to quite a huge area of land especially in the tropical zones. It is a common plant found in the Southern Hemisphere inhabiting the tropical and sub-tropical climates. You are likely to encounter or see plectranthus plant in Asia, South Africa and also in the Pacific Islands. It is a perennial shrub and has fast growing ability. This plant grows up to 2 feet in height. This indoor plant will grow at its best when let to grow in an indoor environment providing good amount of indirect light.

This plant is perfect for indoor plantation as it prefers growing in a shady location.

Leaves: The uniqueness and beauty of this plant emerges from the leaves. It gives rise to evergreen leaves. The underside of the leaves is purple in color. The combination of green and purple makes the plant appear elegant and at the same time unique. The plectranthus plant is greatly known by its aromatic leaves. These leaves when crushed gives an aroma that you will love to smell. As there are different species of plectranthus, the kind of aroma also differs according to the type of species. The other reason people prefer having a pretranthus plant indoor is because of its good aroma. Bloom: Usually you see plants coming up in summers and spring months, when it comes to plectranthus-mona lavender, it blooms during the autumn months with spotted purple bloom. This bloom has a lasting effect-it will grow into the winter through the early spring. You will love this plant in the ways it gives peaceful effect in nature. You will still be in the nature in the dry autumn months by the grace of this indoor plant. Since there are various species of Plectranthus, the color of the bloom varies based on the type of species. The most common color of the bloom are white, pink, purple and yellow. The bloom is most common during the summer and early spring months. The bloom is rich in nectar that attracts quite a number of insects encouraging proper pollination.

Growing : Plectranthus cultivation is easy and affordable. All you need to keep in mind is making sure that the plant receives the right soil type, good water and kept in a shady location.

To keep in mind: Plectranthus will grow well all year round if you protect this plant from direct sunlight. Also keep in mind that letting this plant grow in a dry soil for a long time will led to killing of this plant. This plant is the lover of shady area, thus, letting this plant grow in such location during the summer month is suggested.

Water : Plectranthus has been a popular plant in a tropical land. It is the lover of moisture. Make sure to water thoroughly once the top soil has dried out. They have shallow roots that dry out pretty quickly. Thus, they are the lover of water. They do restore water in their roots to survive drought. But it is always good to water this plant thoroughly.

Temperature : Mona lavender thrives well in an average room temperature of 18-27 C. This plant is the lover of warm temperature. Thus, make sure to bring this plant indoor upon the onset of winter month.

Fertilizer : It is good to provide good fertilizer for a plant’s proper growth. Compared to other indoor plants, mona lavender grows best upon the provision of good fertilizer. You are encouraged to fertilize this plant only after the flower has died out or is starting to fade away. It is good to fertilize this plant once in two weeks time. Diluted liquid fertilizer will do best.

Soil: The life of a plant greatly depends upon the type of soil you let the plant to grow in. Soil serves as a bed for a plant. Thus, it is important to let this plant grow in a soil that is rich in humus or compost manure. Loamy soil is best for this plants proper growth. Make sure that the soil is kept moist at all the times.

Pruning : Pruning is common for mona lavender, it is suggested by the expert gardeners that pinching off the newer stem appearing from the branches of this plant will encourage newer growth and will encourage branching. Also, the bloom is seen arising from the tip of fresh new branches. It is good to cut off the bloom using a sharp scissors once it starts to fade away. In this way, you will witness more blooms and fresher blooms.

Repotting : Most of the people prefer repotting their plant in order to encourage better and healthier growth. You can repot this plant once in a year. Repotting makes the plant come alive with fresher growth on a new soil. The best time to repotting is during the spring months. This will be the time where the blooms fade away. Start repotting once all the flowers are out of shape. As you repot, make sure that the new pot is a size larger than the old pot to encourage the plant to spread more and grow farther. Also make sure that the pot has a good drainage holes. These holes will let the excess water out of the pot helping prevent root rot.

Propagation : Propagating a plant is common and popular among the gardeners around the world because propagating a plant makes the plantation work much easier. The stem cutting method of propagation is common in mona lavender. If you want to propagate mona lavender, the best time to do this work is during the summer or late spring months. It is good that you cut the stem from around 10 inches from the tip. This stem will root following two common methods-by allowing the plant to grow in a moist potted soil or by keeping it in a glass of water.

You can also propagate this plant from a seed. It is important that you choose a healthy and fresh seed and the best time to sow is during the spring months.

Uses: Plectranthus is an indoor plant. Thus, it serves as a home decorator plant of tropical origin. Having this plant at home, beautifies the home environment at the same time giving a proper care and home to this plant.

It also helps in purifying the air and thus helping in good air circulation at home.