Spacing & sowing

Plant spacing

15.7 in

In-row spacing

15.7 in

Between rows

19.7 in

Square-foot density

Not suited to SFG

Growing

Type

Houseplant · Perennial

Botanical family

Mixed / other

Sunlight

Bright indirect light, the whole year round.

Watering

Moderate watering, tailing off through autumn.

Feeding

Feed every two weeks from spring to early autumn.

Frost tolerant

No

Flowering

December

Pruning

Pinch off a few stem segments once flowering is over.

Through the year

• Jan–Mar Dormancy
• Mar–Dec Spring Growth
• Dec–Dec Flowering
• Jan–Jan Flowering

Pests & problems

• Mealybugs Mealybugs at the stem joints and segment bases
• Scale insects Scale insects along the stems
• Root & crown rot Root rot brought on by heavy watering or poor drainage
• Buds dropping after a swing in temperature or a change of position

Garden allies

Beneficial predators that hunt this plant's pests — grow their favourite flowers nearby to recruit them. ★ companion plant

• Hoverfly Syrphidae
  Hunts Scale insectsMealybugs

  Bee-mimicking flies whose legless larvae graze aphid colonies clean while the adults pollinate. A ribbon of shallow, nectar-rich flowers kept in bloom all season recruits wave after wave of them.

  Plant nearby CalendulaChamomileFennelFrench marigoldPhaceliaSweet alyssum
• Ladybird (lady beetle) Coccinellidae
  Hunts Scale insectsMealybugs

  The gardener’s favorite ally: adults and their alligator-shaped larvae each eat thousands of aphids, plus scale, mealybugs, and other soft-bodied sap-suckers. Grow flat, open flowers for the adults and never spray a colony that ladybird larvae are already working.

  Plant nearby CalendulaCilantroCosmosDillFennelYarrow
• Green lacewing Chrysoperla carnea
  Hunts Mealybugs

  Its bristly larvae — "aphid lions" — impale aphids, mealybugs, thrips, and mite colonies, eating hundreds a week. Adults feed on nectar and pollen from small open flowers and overwinter in hollow stems left standing.

  Plant nearby CilantroCosmosDillSunflowerYarrow