A Shout Out to the Princesses of the Plantworld!
Relatively unknown and hard to find, Pileas are small leafed foliage plants commonly known as Polynesian Ivy. The first Pilea I acquired was purely by chance. A friend asked if I was interested in cuttings from an overflowing bush of stunning green and white leafed plants in her front yard. At the time, I hadn't a clue which plant it was. Snapping up the offer gratefully, I hauled my bounty home, quickly researched and GUESS WHAT? It turned out I had just acquired the ultra rare Pilea Cadierei aka the Aluminium Plant. Treasured by plant collectors across the world, my first Pilea princess had just fallen in my lap!!!
Pilea Cadierei/Jamesonia/Minima - one for the collection!
Pretty soon after, I began the hunt for the rest of the genus. Here are some we stock and grow at Mandy's Farm, in our growing collection of the pretty Polynesian princesses of Pilea...
Pilea Depressa/Baby Tears
This uber cutie has petite, teardrop shaped leaves that bunch out lushly, making it an excellent hanging plant.
Pilea Microphyllla /Gunpowder Plant
Another miracle in miniaturized leaves, it makes for a stunning plant and is well suited for tropical terrariums as well.
Pilea Involucrata
New to our collection, this variety has velvetty leaves with a mesmerizing dual tone in dark and bright greens. Definitely a keeper!
Pilea Nummularifolia/Creeping Charlie
One of our most popular plants, this little rogue loves to set its roots and stretch all over your container making it a great choice for a wide container and excellent for open ground cover too. Here's a video of Creeping Charlie in pretty good form at the height of summer....
Easy to grow in full sun with well draining soil and regular water, Pileas offer bang for your buck. At Mandy's Farm, we've been enjoying our acquisitions and the learnings that came with each new variety, and the slow but steady process of figuring out what works best for each of our Pilea Princesses :-) And of course, the hunt is still on for more! We hope to get the much desired Pilea Peperomiodes in stock soon. Do let me know your favorite ones, and check out the Pilea sale at Mandy's Farm - on all of September 2021!
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