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Gloxinia

Sinningia speciosa, Gesneriaceae

Sources last read 14 September 2026.

Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.

Also called Brazilian Gloxinia, Bright Eyes, Florist's Gloxinia, Gloxina and Violet Slipper Gloxinia.

Gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa), the whole plant.
阿橋 HQ, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Toxicity is partly unassessed

  • Listed as non-toxic to cats by ASPCA.
  • Listed as non-toxic to dogs by ASPCA.
  • Not assessed for people. NC State Extension 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

Light
Dappled Sunlight
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Water
Good Drainage
NC State Extension · 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
Toxic to cats
Non-toxic
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to dogs
Non-toxic
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Harmful to people
No record of poisoning in people is listed for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Routine care

Watering
Once the second flowering ends, water less until the leaves die back. After dormancy, when the tubers begin growing, move the pots back into light and water normally again.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Propagation
Leaf cuttings can be used for propagation.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Pests and diseases
Can be troubled by aphids, fungus gnats and root mealybugs. Diseases: bacterial leaf spot.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Move something and watch

Loading the simulator. It needs JavaScript; the care table above does not.

Flowers of Gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa).
FlowersGazamp, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

About the plant

Sinningia speciosa, sometimes known in the horticultural trade as gloxinia, is a tuberous member of the flowering plant native to Brazil within the family Gesneriaceae. Originally included in the genus Gloxinia in 1817, it was reclassified to Sinningia. Showy S. speciosa hybrids are still sometimes referred to simply as "gloxinia", although this name is now technically incorrect.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026

Native range
SE. Brazil
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Brazil
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Climate
seasonally dry tropical
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Growth form
tuberous geophyte or lithophyte
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Perennial; habit mounding
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Size
Height 6–12 in; width 6–12 in
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Flowering
Flowers gold/yellow, purple/lavender, red/burgundy, white; blooms in spring, summer
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Uses

What sources record people using this plant for. A traditional or medicinal use listed here is a record of use, not advice to eat it or treat anything with it.

Kept as a houseplant outside tropical zones.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

More of the Gesneriaceae family

Plants with similar care

Sources

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.