Love these together also, especially since the adjacent daylilies and black-eyed Susans are coming to life!

I love coleus in the garden or in containers too and usually plant at least several. I didn't buy any this Spring tho. :( They come is so many varieties and colors now days.

Glad I could share mine, then, Schoolhouse, so you can get your fix! I agree with you. The colors are so beautiful! I find myself drawn to the deep colors like the crimson and burgundy shades.

I am hoping to propogate these with cuttings in the Fall to bring indoors so that I can enjoy them next summer outdoors again. I bought some at a local farmstand at 2 plants for .99 (I love a bargain) on clearance and they did not come with i.d. tags. I love them and figure that without their names, I would probably have difficulty locating new plants next year to replicate this year's combos.

Have not propogated coleus plants since I was a kid (4th grade class Science project) but remember that they rooted fairly easily and quickly. Have you had any experience w/ propogating them? I'd love your input if you have any advice to share. Thanks in advance!

Those are absolutely Gorgeous.I don't have any coleus this year either.Kinda just forgot about them.So I got my fix with yours as well.TFS
Kathi

Very pretty! I also love coleus altho didn't plant any this year. I did some containers last year with burgundy/lime coleus and lime sweet potato vine.

I've taken cuttings and they are easy to root either in water or soil. I've also grown them from seed.

You can have lots of plants from one if you bring the main plant in before frost and cut it back to give it a nice shape. Root the cuttings and you will have many plants by next spring. Coleus needs to be cut back to grow nice and bushy or it becomes lank and not pretty.

Thanks for all of the info, everyone. Glad you enjoyed looking at them, Kathi. I always feel strange posting pix on here b/c it seems like "showing off" but it really is just that I want to share the beauty of nature with others who I know will appreciate it. :)

Mandolls, yours are gorgeous. I love the chartreuse colored leaves paired with the darker colors. I purchased three trailing hydrangeas online this year but ended up paying quite a bit for them. I may just have to try growing from seeds next year.

As for bringing in the whole plant, I'd love to do that but don't know how you'd keep the bugs from the soil from invading your home. Any hints on how to safely bring plants indoors while leaving the bugs outside?

Photos are shared to give ideas and to show progress of a project or a plant's growth or combinations or placement in a bed or so many different reasons. I never think anyone is posting to show off. Glad that you want to share the beauty with us.

After a week away it is time to replace those tired old spring pansies and violas. I cut back the petunias but may replace them also instead of waiting for them to grow out and bloom again. You have inspired me to plant some more coleus in these pots.

My favorite coleus is Religios Radish, A deep wine leaf with pink border. I don't know how to do pics, but if you have a chance, get this one.

I keep all of the branches as cuttings in water until it warms back up outside. Also works with Persian shield, Perilla. These are all saved cuttings.

House plants and various cuttings. In this area, I purchased 1 sweet potato vine with different leaves than the one I already had.

All of the Coleus here is from saved cuttings except one purchased plant, had different leaves from the ones I already had.

Everything is about half as big as last year, this pic is from October. That's a 55-gallon drum, they got really tall, especially the Perilla 'Magilla.' This row of color was done with just saved cuttings from the winter before last. Don't think I'll have any spots this great at the end of this season, but there's still some time...

Hello,
In that first picture, can you tell me the name of the (I think) bright lime green fern behind the coleus? Very pretty.

Hi tinywojo,

You are correct that the large potted plant is a fern, but I do not know the name of it. I swapped plant divisions with a neighbor years ago and have had these babies popping up everywhere. Decided to pot this one up and I like it, too. I have seen similar colored ferns that appear to be the same cultivar in nurseries and big box stores in my suburban NY area so I assume they are plentiful. Sorry I can't be of more help.

Can anyone tell me the minimum temp for coleus inside? I just killed mine tho my pots of wax begonia and pink splash / pink polka dot are making it through. Outside I keep coleus near those other 2 so I would think they could all be kept in the same area inside??

Any tips and tricks to overwintering pots of coleus in my living room? In my z8b I turn off the heat when we are gone during the day so it is sometimes apx 50F inside. No interest in lights in my warm climate, just wait and put everything outside. Gorgeous coleus in the pics! Thanks!

Below 40, Coleus plants can start to freak out. I'd start to be concerned if regularly exposed to temps that low. About half of my plants, including some Coleus, are in a room that can get down to around 50 on really cold mornings.

Purpleinopp, thanks so much. It was 14F several nights and must have been too cold by the windows.

I propagated the coleus last summer and gave young plants to a gardening friend with a sunroom. We are to compare notes in the spring and trade cuttings of plants that survived inside. Hope to trade wax begonias and pink splash for coleus cuttings. Thanks again!

Awesome plan! I don't know about this winter, but for years, my Mom has had a patch of wax Begonias that come back every year. You might try some in the ground if you have a spot. Last year polka dot plants (pink splash = Hypoestes?) survived outside. Not sure if they'll show up again this spring after the exceptional cold spells.

The only Begonias I've had problems with were tuberous/Reiger. All the others I've encountered are able to survive being brought inside for winter, very cool since they're so hard to find at stores - any kind that's not a wax.

That's why I try to keep Coleus I really like too, when I'm able to find ones that aren't rainbows and wizards one can grow from seeds. Not that I don't love these dearly, just know I'll be able to find some in the spring, inexpensive 6-packs. Any other kind - you might only see it once unless you're lucky enough to live near even one real garden center.

I wish Iresines and Alternantheras were more abundant. These are a lot like Coleus, in wild appearance and ease of propagation, and look cool with Coleus.

This year's coleus combos. The love affair continues...

Mine combo.

Love the pink combinations against the blue colors, haxuan. Very pretty! Thanks for sharing :)

Beautiful Coleus displays and great tips on overwintering and growing from cuttings,..you will probably all shoot me but i had forgotten about Coleus despite having had them in abundance,..alas it was 20 years ago,..now you all have me thinking again.

Yes, glengarry23, they are very easy to overwinter and this year we grew them from seed and had at least 30 plants of varying types. I am having a ball with them although my yard is starting to resemble a coleus farm! I also love the trailing varieties which I have only seen and purchased online.

Glad to have provided some inspiration. Jump back in to the coleus pool whenever you are ready!!!

It is always so wonderful to see everyone's pics! You definitely are inspiring me. I adore the one river_crossroads posted (and it looks as if haxuan has that one, too. May have to make a run to the nursery to look for that one even though it is late in the season to start one!

Hi winsomegardener,
yes i surely intend jumping in the pool,..its amazing how many flowers you can get from just one packet of seeds,..or cuttings,..i never purchase plants always seed trade and i am addicted to taking cuttings,..Coleus and Amaryllis are top of my list.

Philip

winsomegardener: thanks for your kind words.

Xuan (s-w-a-n)

Why is there no coleus forum?? I saw this thread when i typed in coleus. This is my very first combo pot and it so happens that these are also my first coleus... due to inexperience, the plants didn't thrive. I had to divide them and start over from cuttings.

hello from the tropics!
-iane

Beautiful coleus collection, Brown Panda. Yes, there should be a Coleus forum around here. I love getting advice from other coleus fans. Do you plant seeds? This my first year planting from seed and I think I will plant more, now that I know I can plant them year round and propagate them to take to my Farmer's Market here.

Let's see if my casablancas show up

Hi Cathy. I don't plant from seed because it's ridiculously easy for me to propagate coleus. BUT what I've been having trouble with right now is a terrible leafhopper infestation... almost all of my coleus are affected. I've been asking for help from the other forum but i stopped visiting gardenweb because i was disheartened by the lack of response. Now I've returned to GW and WOW! I love the radical change. (But my coleus are still infested... ever had that problem?)

brown_panda, I don't have any problems with my coleus except legginess. I am so wishing the temperature would hurry up and change so I can take some outside so that I can have some more room. You need to Google your coleus problems on the internet. I requested a coleus section on this website and they gave me a response to say that my request has been solved but no coleus section yet. May be you can change your potting media or something. Here are some of my seedlings. They are quite larger now.

I did google for some solutions, tried several but i think i'm on the losing end. I had about 20 cultivars and i think i may have to start all over again. Good thing it's easy because i'm in the tropics... it was just a real blow since it's the first time i've dealt with such a heavy infestation.

I'll be waiting for that coleus section :) here are my plants before the leafhopper invasion!

Add me to the list of folks who would like a coleus forum. I've been putting them in planters for several years now. I'd love seeing other people's combos since I just kind of stick things in there until it's full.

I use Marathon (imidicloprid) in my planters or I couldn't grow coleus because of the bugs. Some say it is an issue with the bees but they aren't after my coleus anyway. I have granular but I think there are some lawn and garden products which contain it.

Diana in PA

Brown_panda Those are some beautiful coleus you have. I am also glad that you can start those over from cuttings. They are so easy to care for. I just don't know what to tell you about your hoppers. Did you Google your problem? There just has to be a solution to this. I have not taken mine outside yet so I don't know what my outcome will be. It is very easy to get them to grow from seed but growing from cuttings is good too. What do you do when you grow them from cuttings?

Quimoi (Diana), I plan to put some of my coleus in the ground to make a two color bed. I have had the plants growing under my grow lights since the early part of February. I think I will stick some in some planters just to post them here. Wish me luck!! I don't know if they will add a coleus section here or not. I don't even remember how I emailed them. I think it was the suggestion box or something. They said my problem was solved so we will see. This is my first year with coleus and I stated from two plants my aunt gave me, which died because I forgot to water them but I am back now. I just have to keep all of my colors together when I put them in my box.

Thank you Cathy. Well, i did research but i think you have to factor in my laziness. I started gardening to relax so when the pests came i got stressed about it. (As you can see in the pic, my other plants are succulents which require very little care and attention). I focused on it for a while and then i just didn't have time to be so vigilant. I tried soap/ alcohol spray since i'm not planning on using insecticides and this usually works but it kills the young shoots and you have to re-apply... also tried beneficial insects and spiders and hand-picking the hoppers (they bite!).

There must be a different kind of excitement when you grow from seed. I just lop off the top growth and put the stem it in a glass of water for a while till i see roots then stick it in soil.

I got way too enthusiastic, i think, with my coleus collection. Next time i'll stick to a few hardy cultivars, It's only been recently that i've noticed that very few people grow coleus in my area though it's so easy to propagate. But since it grows very fast here (and hence leggy), it requires too much attention to prune. Casual gardeners here prefer something they can just water every now and then especially in our searing summer.