Botanical Name: Coleus scutellarioides
Common Names: Coleus, Flame Nettle, Painted Nettle, Lime Coleus
📌 Product Description
Coleus scutellarioides is a colourful ornamental foliage plant widely grown for its vibrant leaves rather than its flowers. Lime-green coleus varieties feature bright chartreuse foliage that brings striking contrast and brightness to garden beds, containers, and shaded areas.
The plant forms a compact, bushy shape with soft stems and textured serrated leaves. Its vivid foliage works especially well when combined with darker plants or flowering annuals, creating strong visual contrast in landscape designs.
Coleus grows quickly and provides continuous ornamental interest throughout the warm season, making it a popular choice in South African gardens.
📏 Size When Fully Grown
Height: 30 – 60 cm
Spread: 30 – 50 cm
Growth Habit: Bushy ornamental foliage plant
Growth Rate: Fast
🌱 Best Growing Conditions
Light: Partial shade to bright indirect light (morning sun tolerated)
Soil: Well-draining fertile soil rich in organic matter
Water:
• Keep soil evenly moist
• Avoid letting soil dry out completely
• Ensure good drainage
Feeding: Apply a balanced fertiliser during the growing season to encourage lush foliage.
Maintenance:
• Pinch growing tips to promote bushier growth
• Remove flower spikes to maintain foliage quality
• Easily propagated from stem cuttings
🌦️ Planting & Growing Season (South Africa)
Best Planting Time: Spring to early summer
Active Growth: Spring and summer
Seasonal Use: Often grown as a warm-season ornamental plant
Climate Suitability: Suitable for most South African regions during warm seasons
Frost Tolerance: Sensitive to frost; protect or grow as a seasonal plant in colder regions
🌼 Additional Benefits
• Bright lime-green foliage
• Fast-growing ornamental plant
• Excellent container plant
• Easy to propagate
• Ideal for brightening shaded areas
🌿 Ideal Uses
✔ Container planting
✔ Patio and balcony displays
✔ Shaded garden beds
✔ Border planting
✔ Mixed foliage arrangements
