I'm loving the results of this experiment, Geoff! I've been thinking of trying to grow them lying down in a long window box planter or even use a semi-hydro propagation box and just letting it go wild inside. My only thought is, regardless of how it's grown, they still need to get haircuts or else the stems will eventually have bare areas as they age when they reach points that they cannot root but continue to grow. Very cool to see the results of this, especially that you have the starting idea, implementation and result all in one video. Excellent job!
Great experiment. I find that most Folks have long trailers from their hanging baskets but in the pot is very sparse. Like a Man with Rasta Dreads and a bald head. Very ugly. Since these plants love to root I take cuttings and stick them in the pot. Also since the bare vines still have active nodes just mist them and they will sprout new growth. Actually mist the hanging baskets trailers makes the plant grow from inside out. Works very well on String of hearts too. The Tradescantia is such a beautiful plant. Ideal for Beginners because it grows like a Weed. Thanks for the video.
Thanks Brian. Yeah I also do the chop and prop thing with the pot. I haven't tried misting the bare sections of the trailers though - I'll definitely give that a try. Thanks for the tip!
It makes sense that this works well. The tendrils get crispy leaves at the top where they drape over the edge and the weight of the stem pinches off the flow of water and nutrients. Growing this way they are not draping over an hard edge, rather crawling along a vertical surface. Absolutely brilliant actually!
Thanks Sarah I appreciate that! And yeah that's true - also in the wild they don't usually travel very far with one stem before putting roots down again.
Absolutely inspirational! I'm going to try pegging cuttings in a circular fashion in a wide-base pot to simulate this idea indoors! I've done the same with a Pothos and it makes a wildly bushy plant
I planted this beauty in a shallow window box in direct sun in Canada, zone 4 with a drought & heat wave last summer. They thrived & sprawled where other plants frizzled. Surprise, surprise!
I noticed on other youtuber plant channels that a lot of vining plants do much better when allowed to grow up something rather than downward, and the leaves get bigger that way. I wonder if that would work on this plant too. Maybe weaving it up a trellis or tie it up a pole.
Stunning!! What a clever idea and a beautiful outcome. Thanks so much for explaining the way the tradescantia roots as it creeps. I'd never heard that before but it makes sense and it's making me rethink how to care for my trads!
Beautiful!! I've seen this done with 2 liter soda bottles, always wondered whether it worked indoors and how to water it. I love tradescantia I always have some in my collection to add vibrancy to my mainly green foliage.
The crispy leaves don't appear on them when grown as a groundcover in Florida (unless they get no water for months on end anyway). I think the results speak for themselves, in six weeks it covered the bag and it will probably continue to bush out. As it grows over itself round these parts, even the stems that are not in contact with the ground, but with the moisture and humidity from below, will send out roots. So it should have no problem rooting as the stems elongate from the top down.
Oh... I love this! I might try it with a canvas tote bag that is too small to really carry anything, but is kind of pretty so it might make a fun hanging planter... Hmmmmm
I had it hanging for 2 years - and it got huge! In the end I got sick of it and binned it off. Easy enough to make another though when the mood takes me. Good luck with yours!
If tradescantia likes to root from each node, could you spiral a long stem round and round on the surface of a pot? That would give lots of rooting points…
Several people in the comments have tried window boxes. Totally depends on your climate as to what to do with them over winter. Many countries with a Mediterranean climate just leave them out as they'll take some frost - more if they're established plants. Here in the north of the UK though is a different matter. I wouldn't try it. There's a reason I never see any growing outside anywhere!
I live in the north of Finland and cannot really grow anything in my greenhouse without extra heat. I would LOVE to see you grow this plant up a moss pole or similar vertival support. One which has some growing medium inside and thus could support the roots as well. Thanks for the videos!
Yeah it's not cheap to heat, especially this last couple of years. I do a minimum of 12°C which is very expensive through one of our winters - I imagine even more so where you are.
Great video 👍 I’ve just purchased my first Tradescantia (tricolour) and learning all about them so I don’t kill it! 🤞 I loved your idea and find that growth rate amazing. I’d love to see a photo of it now!
Yeah it's doing really well - and hopefully will be huge in the coming weeks. I water from the top until it drips out of the bottom. As the media is mostly coir, it soaks up water really well.
I think I must have the largest Trad. zebrina in the country now at nearly 2 metres long and half a metre wide. I've said that before on the channel and I'm yet to be challenged over it! Hope it works well for you.😁
Can I grow the trades on a moss pole containing spagnum moss or does it need to contain soil? Would aroid soil mix work in the pot if I want it grow vertically on the moss pole?
I don't see why not. All they need is a bit of moisture to stimulate side roots to grow from leaf nodes - I've even had them growing in gravel! Moss alone is fine - I did an experiment using various media and moss had the strongest root growth.
Thanks. That video was made just over 2 and half years ago and I finally took it down a few days ago. There were a few dead leaves on the stems and I was ready for a change. I expect it would have lasted even longer if I'd have pegged some new leaf nodes into the bag. I might try it with a Nanouk variety next.
I haven't grown it outside - but I have grown it many times along a horizontal surface in the greenhouse. It grows much more quickly and puts roots down even into gravel! Not surprising really as that's how it grows in the wild.
This was the trad I got cuttings of I told you about. Its like you're catering your content to me now.😂 I recently discovered a dragons breath with the wheat like flowers and my mom bought it for me to test ways of propagating, do you happen to have one??
@@Grow_Up_Man55 it's very beautiful and will thrive in your greenhouse. Its a deep red plant well mine is theres i think 3 different plant colors and 3 types of flower. Theres a cockscomb and a wheat like one I cant remember the other style. They can tolerate bright light but prefer direct sunlight and lots of warmth but needs to stay constantly watered if kept too warm. My whole plant is red. But I think it has to undergo a lot of stress to become truly red. I'm trying to propagate 3 batches 2 in soil and one in water. So far the one in water is holding much better but we both know when soil propping they seem to act sad before they get established.
Do the new leaves look more purple/red til they mature? I see yours is doing it as well and I have like 2 leaves from my rooted cuttings like that as well I figured maybe it was a light issue
Yeah they can do that - and light does seem to affect how much of the silver striping you get. But sometimes they just throw all sorts of colours at various times - and there doesn't appear to be any rhyme or reason behind it.🤷♂️
Now I can under why I think they look green and they look more silver to others my moms in person has a green undertone so it sticks out to me more then the silver. Ever since I got glasses again after years everything small pops out to me more lol
Yeah the ID is particularly tricky - that's for sure. I've got Yellow Hill - only had it a few weeks though, but it's growing strongly. What's your issue?
@@Grow_Up_Man55 thanks for responding 😁 my English is not the best ☺️ My Yellow hill has several leafs totally white, half green/white, don't know if I should change her for a place with a little less little because I'm afraid of burning the leafs.
@@dianasa1273 I would remove any leaves that you don't want - i.e. the non-variegated ones. They want as bright light as you can give them - but not direct sun. Hope that helps!
@@Grow_Up_Man55 You guys have been saying that since before Graham Chapman died. We just assume you're talking about Californyahnyahs or New Porkers. They do tend to lack subtlety.
The largest leaved tropical ones I've seen so far are the Tradescantia spathacea hybrids, although I don't have any yet. The herbaceous temperate varieties also have much larger leaves.
Just from a sustainability standpoint - i.e. the loss of the irreplaceable peat bogs. I do actually use it - but I'm trying to reduce it and once I use up my stocks I'll only be buying alternatives or substitutes.
I'm curious as to how one could implement this inside. Obviously watering could be an issue as you don't really want water going everywhere XD. I was thinking about trying to get my tradescantia to trail around the ceiling of my lounge like some people have fake vines but it looks like that may not be possible if she will die off =( do you have recommendations for a plant that could do this? (that wont cost my kidney)1
I've heard of people growing them in window boxes or something similar enabling them to root along their lengths. I'm not sure how you could do this in a lounge but you get the idea. There might be some sort of long container fit for inside that would allow such an arrangement. You could still try what you're suggesting with Trads - you'd just likely need to keep renewing the older stems - but that's the way many Trad. enthusiasts deal with older stems anyway. 'Chop and prop!'
Your neighbours get annoyed if you water plants and the water drips through?? Bizarre. What do they do when it rains? Shake a fist to the heavens? 🤷♂️How about you collect it underneath in a bucket?
@@Grow_Up_Man55 Oh yes. The water drips and splashes on their railing, and some people complain that algae grows. That's apartment living for you. I do have some plastic tubs to catch water, but they're unsightly and get really dirty. I mostly rely on pots with reservoir spaces.
Tradescantia aren't trailers naturally, they scramble over the ground and up things. So if you leave them growing upright unsupported for long enough, eventually the weight of the stem will flop it over and low and behold, you have your trailer.
For more content on Tradescantia Zebrina and its hybrids, head over to this playlist: ua-cam.com/play/PLQKwmNwb1T5BuZlCqswv9bRKtrbLE1N97.html
I'm loving the results of this experiment, Geoff! I've been thinking of trying to grow them lying down in a long window box planter or even use a semi-hydro propagation box and just letting it go wild inside. My only thought is, regardless of how it's grown, they still need to get haircuts or else the stems will eventually have bare areas as they age when they reach points that they cannot root but continue to grow. Very cool to see the results of this, especially that you have the starting idea, implementation and result all in one video. Excellent job!
Great experiment. I find that most Folks have long trailers from their hanging baskets but in the pot is very sparse. Like a Man with Rasta Dreads and a bald head. Very ugly. Since these plants love to root I take cuttings and stick them in the pot. Also since the bare vines still have active nodes just mist them and they will sprout new growth. Actually mist the hanging baskets trailers makes the plant grow from inside out. Works very well on String of hearts too. The Tradescantia is such a beautiful plant. Ideal for Beginners because it grows like a Weed. Thanks for the video.
Thanks Brian. Yeah I also do the chop and prop thing with the pot. I haven't tried misting the bare sections of the trailers though - I'll definitely give that a try. Thanks for the tip!
It makes sense that this works well. The tendrils get crispy leaves at the top where they drape over the edge and the weight of the stem pinches off the flow of water and nutrients. Growing this way they are not draping over an hard edge, rather crawling along a vertical surface. Absolutely brilliant actually!
Thanks Sarah I appreciate that! And yeah that's true - also in the wild they don't usually travel very far with one stem before putting roots down again.
Absolutely inspirational! I'm going to try pegging cuttings in a circular fashion in a wide-base pot to simulate this idea indoors! I've done the same with a Pothos and it makes a wildly bushy plant
Wow thanks Timothy! You should see it now. It’s well over a metre and a half long with not one single dead leaf and we’re still in winter. 🤷♂️
How did your pegging idea work for you 2yrs later? This is exactly what I was thinking of doing..
This was so helpful and I loved the updates.
I planted this beauty in a shallow window box in direct sun in Canada, zone 4 with a drought & heat wave last summer. They thrived & sprawled where other plants frizzled. Surprise, surprise!
I noticed on other youtuber plant channels that a lot of vining plants do much better when allowed to grow up something rather than downward, and the leaves get bigger that way. I wonder if that would work on this plant too. Maybe weaving it up a trellis or tie it up a pole.
Stunning!! What a clever idea and a beautiful outcome. Thanks so much for explaining the way the tradescantia roots as it creeps. I'd never heard that before but it makes sense and it's making me rethink how to care for my trads!
Glad it was helpful! Good luck with your plants. 😬
Beautiful!! I've seen this done with 2 liter soda bottles, always wondered whether it worked indoors and how to water it. I love tradescantia I always have some in my collection to add vibrancy to my mainly green foliage.
Thanks. You should see it now! It’s the best looking thing on display despite the low light and temperatures of winter.
Super beautiful job! What a spectacular idea
Thank you! 😊
Thank you for this video I've started a flat window box trial because of your videos 💛
Thanks! Good luck with your trial.🤞
What a great idea! I think it is going to look really nice.
Thanks! I think it'll get to be a giant...
The crispy leaves don't appear on them when grown as a groundcover in Florida (unless they get no water for months on end anyway). I think the results speak for themselves, in six weeks it covered the bag and it will probably continue to bush out. As it grows over itself round these parts, even the stems that are not in contact with the ground, but with the moisture and humidity from below, will send out roots. So it should have no problem rooting as the stems elongate from the top down.
The question is: what kind of monster have I unleashed on the world?? 🤣
Oh... I love this! I might try it with a canvas tote bag that is too small to really carry anything, but is kind of pretty so it might make a fun hanging planter... Hmmmmm
I had it hanging for 2 years - and it got huge! In the end I got sick of it and binned it off. Easy enough to make another though when the mood takes me. Good luck with yours!
Oh gosh. Fancy binning it after all that effort 😢 what a waste
This is fantastic!!! I am so doing this, thank you for sharing it! Absolutely awesome!
You are so welcome! I'm pleased you're going to give it a go. By the way, you should see it now! It's really going for it.
That’s pretty cool!
Thanks!
Fantastic video! Thank you!
Glad you liked it!
Thank you , I'm going to try this myself. Regards from South Africa
Mine's been in the bag getting on for 2 years now - and looks better than ever. Good luck with yours - I'm sure it'll look great!
If tradescantia likes to root from each node, could you spiral a long stem round and round on the surface of a pot? That would give lots of rooting points…
Yeah that's a good idea - probably wouldn't work with Nanouk as they stems are very thick - but perhaps with some zebrina varieties.
Fascinating!!! 🤓😁😁👍👍 I think I'd like to try something similar. Thanks for the inspiration 😁
Go for it - let me know how you get on.
@@Grow_Up_Man55 it will likely take some time for me to do it, but I will keep you posted.
What about doing window boxes? Has anyone tried that? If so, what do you do with them in the winter?
Several people in the comments have tried window boxes. Totally depends on your climate as to what to do with them over winter. Many countries with a Mediterranean climate just leave them out as they'll take some frost - more if they're established plants. Here in the north of the UK though is a different matter. I wouldn't try it. There's a reason I never see any growing outside anywhere!
I live in the north of Finland and cannot really grow anything in my greenhouse without extra heat. I would LOVE to see you grow this plant up a moss pole or similar vertival support. One which has some growing medium inside and thus could support the roots as well. Thanks for the videos!
Yeah it's not cheap to heat, especially this last couple of years. I do a minimum of 12°C which is very expensive through one of our winters - I imagine even more so where you are.
It looks great but how did you water the bag so it wasn’t sodden ?? Great video thanks !!
I just top watered and then pulled it horizontal to stop water coming out of the holes. Worked fine like that for nearly 2 years till I sick of it!
What about trying a mosspole ?
Funny you should say that as I have a moss pole sitting on my desk ready to give it a try!
@@Grow_Up_Man55 how did it turn out?
@@hmjevon never actually got around to it! 🤣
Fascinating!
Thanks!
Great video 👍 I’ve just purchased my first Tradescantia (tricolour) and learning all about them so I don’t kill it! 🤞 I loved your idea and find that growth rate amazing. I’d love to see a photo of it now!
Thanks! 😁 Take a look at my more recent videos and you’ll see it many times in all its glory. I have to keep chopping it back. 🤣
OMG. All that growth in just four weeks. Well done. How do you water it?
Yeah it's doing really well - and hopefully will be huge in the coming weeks. I water from the top until it drips out of the bottom. As the media is mostly coir, it soaks up water really well.
Brilliant, totally going to do this, thank you!!!
I think I must have the largest Trad. zebrina in the country now at nearly 2 metres long and half a metre wide. I've said that before on the channel and I'm yet to be challenged over it! Hope it works well for you.😁
Thats an impressive size. Your Trads always have the most Amazing color and sheen too. Ill set up my Zebrina as you did, and let you know how it goes.
This was an amazing video. I’m going to try this somehow
Thanks! 😁 It definitely does work. Mine is nearly two metres long now.
Can I grow the trades on a moss pole containing spagnum moss or does it need to contain soil? Would aroid soil mix work in the pot if I want it grow vertically on the moss pole?
I don't see why not. All they need is a bit of moisture to stimulate side roots to grow from leaf nodes - I've even had them growing in gravel! Moss alone is fine - I did an experiment using various media and moss had the strongest root growth.
Thank you for super prompt response. I will plant them in aroid soil mix on a spagnum moss pole. Wish me luck.
Great results! I'm curious to know how long it will stay looking so nice.
Thanks. That video was made just over 2 and half years ago and I finally took it down a few days ago. There were a few dead leaves on the stems and I was ready for a change. I expect it would have lasted even longer if I'd have pegged some new leaf nodes into the bag. I might try it with a Nanouk variety next.
Have you ever tried letting some grow on the ground to see what it does?
I haven't grown it outside - but I have grown it many times along a horizontal surface in the greenhouse. It grows much more quickly and puts roots down even into gravel! Not surprising really as that's how it grows in the wild.
This was the trad I got cuttings of I told you about. Its like you're catering your content to me now.😂 I recently discovered a dragons breath with the wheat like flowers and my mom bought it for me to test ways of propagating, do you happen to have one??
Haha - it's just for you Mira!😁 Never heard of Dragon's Breath though I'm afraid.
@@Grow_Up_Man55 it's very beautiful and will thrive in your greenhouse. Its a deep red plant well mine is theres i think 3 different plant colors and 3 types of flower. Theres a cockscomb and a wheat like one I cant remember the other style. They can tolerate bright light but prefer direct sunlight and lots of warmth but needs to stay constantly watered if kept too warm. My whole plant is red. But I think it has to undergo a lot of stress to become truly red. I'm trying to propagate 3 batches 2 in soil and one in water. So far the one in water is holding much better but we both know when soil propping they seem to act sad before they get established.
Oh, what is that vine with the pink flowers on the right? It's lovely ❤
Can you give me a time stamp?
@@Grow_Up_Man55 15:30
Bougainvillea braziliensis
Do the new leaves look more purple/red til they mature? I see yours is doing it as well and I have like 2 leaves from my rooted cuttings like that as well I figured maybe it was a light issue
Yeah they can do that - and light does seem to affect how much of the silver striping you get. But sometimes they just throw all sorts of colours at various times - and there doesn't appear to be any rhyme or reason behind it.🤷♂️
@@Grow_Up_Man55 good to know 😂 I was confused because they seem happy as can be.
Now I can under why I think they look green and they look more silver to others my moms in person has a green undertone so it sticks out to me more then the silver. Ever since I got glasses again after years everything small pops out to me more lol
I love tradescantias 😍 but I never know what is the variety 🤣 because they change colour. Would like to know your opinion about my Yellow hill.
Yeah the ID is particularly tricky - that's for sure. I've got Yellow Hill - only had it a few weeks though, but it's growing strongly. What's your issue?
@@Grow_Up_Man55 thanks for responding 😁 my English is not the best ☺️
My Yellow hill has several leafs totally white, half green/white, don't know if I should change her for a place with a little less little because I'm afraid of burning the leafs.
@@dianasa1273 I would remove any leaves that you don't want - i.e. the non-variegated ones. They want as bright light as you can give them - but not direct sun. Hope that helps!
@@Grow_Up_Man55 can I send you a picture? For your email maybe.
@@dianasa1273 Sure - go ahead.
Keep us updated, please
This video is 18 months old so practically every greenhouse vlog I’ve made since you can see how it’s doing. Spoiler: it still looks fantastic! 😁
Was the reference to a cunning plan intentional? It gave me a chuckle.
Baldrick! If you're from the UK and a similar age to me - you'll know what I mean! 😂
@@Grow_Up_Man55 let’s carve our names on a bullet. (But I’ll a yank.)
Am I the only one who caught the Black Adder reference?
Reflexively rolled my eyes, sighed, and said "Yes...Baldric." and put my fist on my hip.
Lol! Highly likely as the majority of subscribers are not from the UK. 🤣
@@Grow_Up_Man55 I'm a Tennessean.
@@masterofpuppers7963 Well, that's a surprise! I didn't think you guys would either see Blackadder or get the jokes if you did!
@@Grow_Up_Man55 You guys have been saying that since before Graham Chapman died. We just assume you're talking about Californyahnyahs or New Porkers. They do tend to lack subtlety.
Any Tradescantias with larger leaves? I also encountered a thick-stemmed cultivar but that was many years ago.
The largest leaved tropical ones I've seen so far are the Tradescantia spathacea hybrids, although I don't have any yet. The herbaceous temperate varieties also have much larger leaves.
Where can I buy those grow bags?
I got mine from Amazon.
Why don’t you want to use Peat?? Many sites suggest mixing it into soil… especially with succulents.
Just from a sustainability standpoint - i.e. the loss of the irreplaceable peat bogs. I do actually use it - but I'm trying to reduce it and once I use up my stocks I'll only be buying alternatives or substitutes.
Do you sell your red jewel or share clippings?
I'm sorry - I don't. I couldn't possibly fit that into my day too.🤷♂️
I'm curious as to how one could implement this inside. Obviously watering could be an issue as you don't really want water going everywhere XD. I was thinking about trying to get my tradescantia to trail around the ceiling of my lounge like some people have fake vines but it looks like that may not be possible if she will die off =( do you have recommendations for a plant that could do this? (that wont cost my kidney)1
I've heard of people growing them in window boxes or something similar enabling them to root along their lengths. I'm not sure how you could do this in a lounge but you get the idea. There might be some sort of long container fit for inside that would allow such an arrangement. You could still try what you're suggesting with Trads - you'd just likely need to keep renewing the older stems - but that's the way many Trad. enthusiasts deal with older stems anyway. 'Chop and prop!'
I like the idea but I wouldn't want the water dripping down as it will annoy my neighbours. It'd be good to find some way of catching excess water.
Your neighbours get annoyed if you water plants and the water drips through?? Bizarre. What do they do when it rains? Shake a fist to the heavens? 🤷♂️How about you collect it underneath in a bucket?
@@Grow_Up_Man55 Oh yes. The water drips and splashes on their railing, and some people complain that algae grows. That's apartment living for you. I do have some plastic tubs to catch water, but they're unsightly and get really dirty. I mostly rely on pots with reservoir spaces.
@Peleski 🤣 Ah right - that makes sense I guess. Didn’t realise it was an apartment. 🤷♂️😁
@@Grow_Up_Man55 Tradescantia is good for apartments because it softens railings, which can be quite cage like.
How can i get my plant to trail down
Tradescantia aren't trailers naturally, they scramble over the ground and up things. So if you leave them growing upright unsupported for long enough, eventually the weight of the stem will flop it over and low and behold, you have your trailer.
@@Grow_Up_Man55 thank you x
Does anyone know what that fabric is called? Thank you
Do you mean the one I tell you about in the video? The jute bag?
Tough to grow those weeds in a different climate!!
Yep! One man's weed is another man's treasure!
Decorative varieties of Oxalis exist, lol
is this plant is harmful for baby
Google tells me it's 'mildly toxic' to humans and animals.