Nature Diary... Tradescantia and Companions

It was a peaceful day when I sat gazing at some of my precious plants looking splendid in the autumn sunshine. Pride of place today and outshining all the rest was my fairly recent purchase of a Tradescantia positively bursting with life and magnificent in colour.

I’d bought it just a few weeks ago when I’d seen it sitting sadly on a shelf in a local garden centre with half a dozen other Tradescantia all absolutely parched and all looking very poorly. Not an uncommon happen-stance methinks. Well I decided to rescue one as I’ve always loved these beautiful plants so home it came with me. The rest… well I hope someone waters them.

After a few days, well watered and surrounded by other plants, it dropped at least two dozen cuttings of its own accord as if trying to save its precious centre. As the parched end pieces fell around the mother plant I carefully collected them and put them in water in my little glass egg cups where I could see if roots developed. Within a matter of just a few days roots began to appear. Within less than two weeks there were so many healthy roots I was able to plant them in some potting compost. A couple of weeks later while visiting my eldest son I took him a splendid, healthy little Tradescantia plant with which he was delighted. Meanwhile I had a dozen or so other pieces of the mother plant well rooted and waiting to be potted up which I then planted in two more little pots and will take pleasure in watching them grow.

The mother plant settled down and flourished and its leaves have produced the most incredible colour which I photographed today as the sun shone through the south window highlighting their beauty. I expect in the winter as the light changes the delicate silvery-green stripes on the leaves will shine out more brightly. I’m so glad I decided to rescue this lovely plant even though my plants these day consist for the most part of cacti and succulents this splash of colour is a delightful and very welcome addition.