I think it's a Coleus "Electric Lime".

I've never tried to overwinter them, so hopefully someone else knows.

I'm down south. And I'd still do what you suggest Ken. Far better. You'd have the ugliest leggiest plant ever, some spring. Unless you mean, south, as in the Gulf coast area and further south. I'm only in Nashville. It's a good suggestion to take cuttings.

I don't know if this is a patented plant or not, but my comments will be based on the assumption that taking cuttings of "Electric Lime" is legal.

Kyle, I'm a big coleus fan and have been growing them from cuttings and seeds since I was little. I encourage you to bypass the water rooting and learn to grow cuttings directly in a good, porous potting medium. Truly, coleus is one of easiest of all plants to root.

I also consider them easy to grow inside for the winter. Cut back the mature plant heavily before bringing it inside, place it in a very bright location, supplying supplimental light, if necessary. Avoid dry, heated or chilled drafts.

I live in the temperate South, with closed windows and the heat running all winter long. But I remember my dad taking cuttings of pretty tri-colored coleus in the fall, in order to adorn the sunny kitchen window for my mother all winter long. That was in frigid central NYS.

rob.. in the great white north known as snow country ... the forced air furnace.. usually has registers.. right under the windows that let in light ...

by about january .. the humidity in the house is horrible.. cracking skins.. dry lips.. sparks from the carpet .. etc .. nothing a plant prefers ... when you have a plant that needs the sun thru the window with the register below...

by this time.. the plant is severely root bound.. you cant keep the soil moist ... lower leaves start falling off... making a mess ... if your real lucky ... due to overwatering.. you get fungus gnats.. etc ...

this is a rather fast growing plant.. and this little plant your start with.. could be a 2-3 foot mess ...

when i got to that point i rooted some small new ones ... and once i was sure they were set.. i opened the sliding door.. and chucked that big old momma into a snow drift...happy days.. lol ...

my point.. its a furnace thing.. up north .. and i presume. the further south you go.. furnace-wise.. the less of an issue it is .. not sure where OP is ...

ken

ps: coffee buzz hit.. not sure that is coherent.. lol .. i hope you all get the idea ..

All I'm saying is, Ken, that my experience with coleus, even as a child in the snow belt of NYS, with a rumbling oil furnace in the basement, there was never a problem with the coleus cuttings, or any other plant that we always had around the house.

I think that it's always helpful to share ones own problems with plants, ken, but try to remember that your issues may not be typical, or that others find ways to avoid them altogether.

There are fussy plants or those that I would never bother with bringing inside for the winter. Coleus is easy, adaptable, takes well to heavy pruning of the top and the root system. And as I said earlier, it's an ideal plant to learn how to be successful in propagating cuttings in a proper medium.

My opinion is to enjoy the plant you have for as long as possible. Trim it back to take indoors if/when your whether gets cold, and enjoy it there for as long as you can. When you no longer feel the plant is making you happy, toss it and go online to one of the reputable coleus dealers and buy a few new ones to enjoy. They can get pricey, but for carefree, constant beauty with minimal deadheading required, well worth it. Also, if you cruise the spring annuals at your local nurseries, you can find more beauties at more reasonable prices. You just run the risk of not finding just what you are in the mood for. Good luck.

Martha

why couldn't you make cuttings of your own plant for your own use? I haven't ever thought that would be bad. Rather like, and I'm dating myself here, recording onto an audio tape, the LPs I owned so I could put them away and save them from any more abuse. I didn't make tapes for others, only myself and it was of my own albums. I didn't think that'd be wrong? So why not prolonging the life of the plant you already paid for? But that's just how I see it.

Rob,

We are dating ourselves. But, due to advancements in science, technology and legal haggling, it has been decided that the creators of specific plant lines deserve to be reimbursed for any use/enjoyment of that plant. I happen to agree completely with the new laws, though I don't like it when I'm on the consumer end. But, if I calculate the enjoyment I receive from a plant that I get to possess for up to a year, and compare that to other places I might drop $5-6, it doesn't seem unreasonable. If you want to be frugal, you can start plants from seed.

BTW, the rules for recording music have also tightened up significantly, though I leave that to my kids to keep track of.

Martha

I am a strict viewer of laws, such as royalties for music, audio, video downloads should go the artist. But I still challenge plant cultivators to find out if it is the original plant I've coddled over winter, or one that has been propagated as a cutting from it. How? No need to answer, but it's my main thought.

one might argue that copyright is a restriction for commercial profit ...

rooting something to replace your 'own' plant shouldnt be all that big an problem ... unless you are making a 100 of them to take to the saturday farmers market .... after all.. you already bought the plant.. and paid the fee ... its not exactly like stealing the music in the first place ....

rhiz.. i wasnt arguing with you.. i was explaining for warmer zone peeps about the travails of growing things indoors in winter ..

ken

Just to clarify....the plant patent laws are not restricted to those who sell the plants, but are intended for all of us. I will say that private homeowners are hardly likely to get caught or fined, however. I'm a stickler for following the letter of the law because I have been a professional who has paid the necessary fees for (legal) propagation rights.

No one will be knocking on your door, that's for sure. But I wouldn't get the enjoyment out of a plant that I took illegal cuttings from. That's just me.

We take $$$$ out of the pockets of the individuals, scientists, research institutions, and universities who work hard at 'inventing' plants that are more disease and insect resistant, more heat or cold tolerant, longer blooming, better tasting, more beautiful, etc.

How glad will you be when plant breeders finally succeed in developing an Impatiens truly resistant to impatiens downy mildew? Willing to pay for the pleasure? I know that I will show my gratitude at the cash register. I save my pennies for my particular weakness.....hybrid Coleus cultivars. ;-)

It can take anywhere from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars and many years to successfully obtain a plant patent. The patent holders deserve to be paid.

It's an interesting discussion but not a debate.

Let's say your plant makes clumps. You're not supposed to divide the clumps? What if the plant leans a bit, and part of it lands on dirt, and it makes it's own roots all by itself, you'd just rip it out the new "plants" and be done with it? Or say, it was a plant that produced non-sterile seeds, and volunteers popped up, I should feel guilty about growing an "illegal" plant and yank them? I do want patent holders to be paid, but there is a limit. Monsanto comes to mind. They really cross the line into what's reasonable to patent in the plant world and how they protect it. I think I'm more on the patent holder end, but not all the way into it deeply. I don't think it's ok to make ten plants out of the one, especially if you're taking them to market to sell. Or even keeping 10 new plants at your house. But I don't believe it's quite so cut/dried as you say? Or I disagree somewhat, albeit in a minor way ;)