| Description | Polka Dot Plant (Hypoestes phyllostachya) A small plant with very colorful leaf markings. Needs bright light for the best leaf color. Can be used as an indoor plant or bedded out in your garden. Botanically they are a tender subshrub. |
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| Pronunciation | (hy-poh-ES-teez)(fy-lo-STAK-ee-uh) |
| Plant Type | Indoor Foliage, Site author's observations, Subtropical woody plants |
| Hardiness Zone | (9)10-11 |
| Sunlight | will tolerate full sun but prefers bright light, needs some sun or bright light to bring out the colors |
| Moisture | evenly moist, average |
| Soil & Site | average |
| Growing Media | average house |
| Temperature | average house |
| Flowers | flowers detract from the plant and are usually removed, will form a long raceme small tubular lilac/purple or white flowers |
| Leaves | When I first started growing this plant the varieties available had green leaves with small dots of color. The new varieties like "Splash", "Hippo" and "Confetti" have more color than green. Leaves are soft, downy and come in red, pink and white |
| Dimensions | up to 16 inches but usually smaller |
| Maintenance | removal of flower stalks, pruning or pinching to keep the plants compact especially ones that are overwintered indoors |
| Propagation | easy from seeds and cuttings. |
| Native Site | Africa, Asia and Madagasscar |
| Misc Facts | "Genus name comes from the Greek hypo meaning under and estia meaning a house for the calyxes being covered by bracts. Genus phyllostachya means "leaf spike", possibly in reference to the leafy bracts on the flowering spikes". (#144) AKA: Freckle-face, Measles plant, Flamingo Plant, Baby's Tears Hypooestes, SYN: Hypoestes sanguinolenta |
| Author's Notes | Not only is this a neat house plant but I have also used it in my commercial annual gardens. |
| Notes & Reference | #18-House Plant Encyclopedia (Nico Vermeulen), #21-Indoor Gardening (Chicago Botanical Gardens Staff), #144-Missouri Botanical Gardens web site (www.missouribotanicalgarden.org), #109-Annuals and Tender Perennials for North American Gardens (Wayne Winterrowd) |
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