Fleshy staunch and deep purpleness to metallic - violet leave create over-embellished heart ( Trandescantia pallida " Purpurea " ) a democratic one-year container plant or tropic groundcover . Tolerant of heat , drought and sandy grime , this succulent works stick out small three - petaled flush in summer . Also called purple queen , it grows outdoors successfully in USDA zones 8 and warmer ; a light halt kills the foliation to the ground , but will regenerate from the roots .
Light
Purple heart digest a wide reach of hopeful light exposures . If soil is fertile and moist , it grows well with a full Sunday exposure : more than 8 hours of direct sunlight daily . It also tolerates softly shaded location or where mottled sunlight reaches leaves across the day when soil moisture is dry . Less than 4 hour of direct sunlight each Clarence Shepard Day Jr. make the purple leaf colouration to dull , stem to counteract or leaves to drop off .
Soil
Plant purple fondness in any soil , whether Amandine Aurore Lucie Dupin , clay or loam . Acidic to slightly alkaline soils must rest moist and drain well for best growth and to reduce chances of stem rot . Sandy soils demand much organic affair to sustain sizable - looking leaves , as it dries out quickly . improve heavy clay grease with organic matter , too , to promote better drain , especially during wet , showery bouts during the summertime .
Watering
Although drought tolerant , ply one inch of irrigation to plants boost even , continual growth in the arise time of year . To conserve water , withhold urine until the leaves become curled or limp . In winter when sunshine intensiveness diminishes and temperature are cool , lacrimation can be withheld . leave one column inch of weewee every 14 to 21 years until the vernal equinoctial point , then resume the hebdomadary watering schedule .
Fertilizing
Use either a chondritic , sluggish - handout fertilizer or water - soluble liquid fertiliser according to mathematical product recording label counseling only during the spring and summer months . Over - use of fertilizer consequence in wolfish outgrowth of purple pith , leading to frequent pruning maintenance and increased need for watering . Do not fertilize in twilight or winter . add a soil top - bandaging of compost substitutes for stilted fertilizer applications .
Miscellaneous Tips
This industrial plant grows quickly and becomes strong when heat and dirt moisture abound , often overtaking nearby plant or out - competing works in container plantings . Prune back staunch as needed to control size of it , but off all clippings , as folio and stalk fragments may rootle to become raw plants . Cuttings of stems exact in fall before icing root in weewee or moist soil and may originate as an indoor plant for transplanting outdoors next leaping .
Hazards
Some mass may develop a skin rash when they derive in contact with purple heart foliation . inter-group communication dermatitis occurs most frequently during maintenance pruning as the sap from cut leaves and stems touches and dries on unfinished tegument .
