Tradescantia pallida

Purple-Heart Spiderwort

Tradescantia are scrambling plants, some of which flower in the morning and when the sun is shining. The 'spiderworts' form clumps. The flowers of tradescantia are triangular, with three petals, and are short-lived. 'Purple Heart' is a trailing spiderwort that can also be good groundcover. It has long pointed purple leaves (up to 5") and 3-petalled pink flowers, usually in Summer, but occasionally at other times when grown in a frost-free area. Grow in bright light for best leaf colour

Contributed by @ShelleySnyder

plant Features

Full sun to partial shade
Very little water
Full Frost Hardy: 5F (-15°C)
Moist and fertile

plant information

Common name

Purple-Heart Spiderwort

Latin name

Tradescantia pallida

type

Herbaceous Perennials

family

Commelinaceae

ph

5.0 - 7.5 Acid - Neutral

Light

Full sun to partial shade
Frost

Full Frost Hardy: 5F (-15°C)

Soil

Moist and fertile
Water

Very little water

Plant & bloom calendar

Best time to plant

full grown dimensions

The size of a fully grown Purple-Heart Spiderwort is 0.45meters x 0.60meters

0.45 M 0.60 M

Tradescantia pallida

Planting young plants

From Late Autumn TO Mid Spring

Plant out garden species from autumn to spring in any fertile and moist soil in full sunlight. As the plants establish, pinch out regularly to promote bushy growth.

Propagation by division.

From Late Autumn TO Early Spring

Divide garden plants between late autumn and early spring. Place two hand forks back-to-back near the middle of the plant. Gently push the handles back and forth so that the prongs gradually tease the plant apart. Repeat the process with each portion to divide the plant into more sections, making sure each section has a healthy bud. Discard the old, woody growth from the centre of the plant. Some fibrous-rooted perennials, form a loose crown of many stems and can be simply pulled apart by hand without damaging the plant. You can also take off separate stems growing at the edge of the plant, just make sure each portion has its own roots.

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