Coleus
Sources last read 14 September 2026.
Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.
Also called Chinese basil, Coleus Wizard, painted nettle and Trailing Coleus.
Toxicity is partly unassessed
- Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for people. RHS publishes no harm statement for this plant. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
What the sources say about its care
Sources file this plant under other names: Coleus blumei. Citations below point at the name its source uses.
- Light
- High light 150 fcClemson Extension, filed as Coleus blumei · read 13 September 2026Full sunRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Water
- Moist but well-drainedRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Humidity
No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.
ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026- Temperature
How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.
H1C — 5–10°C 5–10 °CRHS · read 13 September 2026- Soil
- Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or NeutralRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to cats
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to dogs
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Harmful to people
- No statement of harm to people is published for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.RHS · read 13 September 2026
Routine care
- Watering
- Cuttings root easily in water or in clean potting soil.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026During growth, water generously and give a high-nitrogen fertiliser every 2 weeks.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Propagation
- Stem cuttingsNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Increase from seed or cuttings.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pruning
- Pinch out growing tips for bushier growth.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pests and diseases
- Can be troubled by whiteflies, aphids and twospotted spider mite.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Can be troubled by glasshouse whitefly, scale insects and mealybugs. Diseases: usually none.RHS · read 13 September 2026
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Photographs
About the plant
- Native range
- Indo-China to Nansei-shotō and N. AustraliaWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Southeast Asia and Malaysia; Asia and tropical AfricaNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Malaysia and SE AsiaRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Climate
- wet tropicalWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- Growth form
- subshrubWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Annual, Ground Cover, Herbaceous Perennial; habit erectNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Bushy (evergreen)RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Size
- Height 6–36 in; width 6–36 inNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Height 0.5-1 metres; spread 0.1-0.5 metres after 1–2 yearsRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Flowering
- Flowers blue, purple/lavender, white; blooms in fall, summerNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Flowers blue in spring, summer and autumnRHS · read 13 September 2026
Other Coleus
More of the Lamiaceae family
Plants with similar care
AcajouSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Acorus gramineusSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Alberta Prayer PlantSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
- No photograph yetAlocasia azlaniiSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
- No photograph yetAlocasia lauterbachianaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Alocasia micholitzianaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Sources
- ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Clemson Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- RHS · read 13 September 2026
What this does not cover
The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.
Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.
If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.