How to Care for Tradescantia

Tradescantia, often called the inch plant or wandering dude, is the fastest-growing trailing plant most people will ever own. 

There are around seventy-five species in the genus and they all come from the Americas, ranging from southern Canada right down to northern Argentina. The most popular houseplant types come from Mexico, Central America and Brazil, where they sprawl across the ground in warm, bright, fairly open positions rather than deep shade. 

How Much Light Does Tradescantia Need?

Tradescantia wants bright, indirect light, and a couple of hours of gentle direct sun does it good. A spot in or right beside an east or west-facing window is ideal.

Light is what drives the colour in this plant. In a bright position, the purples deepen, the silver stripes sharpen and the variegation stays crisp. In a dim corner the same plant fades towards plain green, the stems stretch, and the gaps between leaves grow long and bare so the plant looks straggly rather than lush. If yours has gone leggy and dull, more light is the fix. Only harsh summer afternoon sun through glass is worth filtering.

How Often Should You Water Tradescantia?

Water when the top 2 to 3cm of compost feels dry. In spring and summer that often means once or twice a week, dropping to every ten to fourteen days in autumn and winter.

Because it grows so fast, a Tradescantia in a bright warm room drinks a surprising amount in summer, so check with a finger rather than sticking to a fixed day. The leaves go slightly soft and the stems droop when it is genuinely thirsty, and it perks up within hours. Water thoroughly until it runs from the drainage holes, then let the pot drain fully. Those fleshy stems rot quickly if the compost stays sodden, so never leave it standing in water.

What Humidity Does Tradescantia Need?

Tradescantia is comfortable anywhere from 40% to 60% humidity, which covers almost any home.

It comes from warm but reasonably open habitats in the Americas rather than dense rainforest, so it has never been dependent on constantly moist air. Higher humidity does produce slightly lusher growth, and it thrives in a bright bathroom, but it copes perfectly well with dry winter rooms. There is no need for a humidifier or a pebble tray, and because the leaves and stems are fleshy, sitting wet is a bigger risk than drying out.

What Temperature Does Tradescantia Need?

Tradescantia grows best between 18°C and 27°C and is happy at ordinary room temperature all year.

The lowest temperature it can withstand is around 10°C. Below that growth stops, the stems can develop soft translucent patches and the plant will not recover from sustained cold. Keep it away from draughty doorways and freezing window glass in winter, and if you hang it outside for the summer, bring it in well before nights start dipping towards 10°C.

How Do You Propagate Tradescantia?

Tradescantia is the plant to hand a complete beginner, because cuttings root in days rather than weeks.

Snip a stem around 10 cm long just below a node, which is the slightly swollen point where a leaf joins the stem. Remove the lowest leaf or two so the bottom nodes are bare. Stand the cutting in a glass of water with those nodes covered, somewhere warm and bright, and roots will usually appear within one to two weeks. Sometimes sooner.

Once the roots are a couple of centimetres long, pot the cutting into free draining compost. Planting six or eight cuttings together in one pot gives you a full, generous plant immediately, which is exactly how nurseries produce them. Cuttings will also root pushed directly into damp compost if you would rather skip the water stage.

This is worth doing regularly, not just to make new plants. Tradescantia naturally goes bare at the base as it ages, so taking cuttings from the healthy tips and starting again every year or two keeps your plant looking full.

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