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Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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Posted by pandorasgarden z8 GA (My Page) on Sun, Sep 7, 08 at 13:10
I recently visited the lovely Mary Livingston Ripley Garden in Washington, DC and
I fell in love with this absolutely gorgeous burgundy colored shade (perhaps partial shade) plant. I took a photo thinking that I could read the tag when I got home, but unfortunately the tag seems to read "Irksome herbs"! Obviously my photo doesn't have enough resolution for me to be able to identify the plant :). Can anyone identify this plant for me? It doesn't appear to be any known variety of coleus that I've been able to find and I don't have any other ideas.
Thanks for any suggestions you might have.
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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| I'm trying a better/bigger picture this time. I hope someone is able to help id this plant for me. Thanks!! 
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RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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| Thanx for posting the better/bigger picture. I couldn't tell much from the first/smaller one. Looks to me like Iresine. Its an annual. It grows taller in the sun but also sun-scalds. Leaves get kinda white-ish which only makes them stand out more. Mine has pointed leaves but I can't tell for sure if yours are too. I thot sure someone would have commented by now. I hope someone else will comment if I'm wrong but that's what it looks like to me. Look it up on the Net and compare. I think there is more than 1 variety. But yours looks pretty much like mine. I bought mine in the spring and took lots of cuttings. Best wishes, Barbara. |
RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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| Thanks for the response... they are iresine. I actually bought 3 of the plants on sale at the Grower's Outlet for 10 cents each. I've started cuttings rooting for over winter, but I went ahead and put the plants in the garden for a little color until the first big freeze. |
RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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- Posted by bahia SF Bay Area (My Page) on
Mon, Jan 5, 09 at 23:05
| It is an Iresine, I. herbstii, and it can be a herbaceous perennial shrub where it doesn't freeze, and at least here in coastal California, it will also do well in full sun. I also have a yellow leafed form of this plant that is even more vigorous, which has pink tinged stems. As you say, it is very easy to root in water indoors for the winter, and treat it like a Coleus. They both will actually tolerate a bit of light frost here in Berkeley, but at about 30F they do defoliate for me. The form you show in your photo is not quite as shrubby, there is another similar plant that has thicker stems and larger leaves that can easily get 5 to 6 feet tall in a couple of year's time. They're useful as indoor foliage plants for a sunny spot as well as outdoors. |
RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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| bahia, thanks for the additional info. My cuttings are still rooting on my windowsill. ... Just waiting for spring! It gets too cold here for the outdoor plants to survive, but I'll try to bring one indoors next fall as a houseplant. |
RE: Can anyone ID this beautiful shade plant
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I also have that plant overwintering in a bathtub with a window next to it. I didn't know the real name, but the man that sold it to us called it a chicken gizzard. Have you heard of that. I'm going to take some cutting. Thanks for the info.
Margie |
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