Pilea Depressa or Shiny Creeping Charlie. That ladies and gentlemen is the name of this plant- that caused quite a stir on my Instagram yesterday- and I am holding my stomach and laughing my guts out because I have a friend whom we call Charlie and I am certain she will laugh out her lungs too when she reads this. She absolutely must have a cutting of this and I shall remember to do this when I visit her next. Shiny Creeping Charlie! Hahaha, what is this, some supernatural cocaine? You want to the other names? Giant Baby’s Tears. What kind of funk are these botanists smoking? Like seriously! Shiny Creeping Charlie?

But for now, this is the plant that you should be looking for when you want some creeper-drama in your home, and most nurseries would know it by the name of Pilea. Pilea, not piles. One alphabet here and there and you’d be sorry for what you asked. P-I-L-E-A. Remember!

But then, just getting them is not enough. Taking care of them is of utmost importance if you want your Pilea Depressa to thrive, and though fairly simple, there are a few do’s and don’ts that you must keep in mind.

How to take care of Pilea Depressa

Pilea Depressa or Shiny Creeping Charlie prefers being in partial shade. Though I have heard some of them prefer direct sunlight I have found my love partial shade because the leaves dry up if I leave them in direct sunlight. So the first DO in your list is to see where it prefers being.

If you are keeping them indoors, a weekly watering of twice does good. They are tropical plants and love moisture in their soil, and in the overall environment- which is great for us Mumbai people because moisture is one thing we never run out of.

You’d ideally want to hang them because the leaves fall beautifully but I love them on my wardrobe and that is one way you can jazz up your wardrobe tops especially if they are on plain slight. However, always take them out in the balcony, water them and get them back after a few hours. A plate beneath the Pilea might contribute to root rot.

As for the soil, I use potting soil for almost everything except hydrangea and add a couple of spoonful of compost every month and that is enough to keep them going. No other nutrients are required. You can use partly sandy soil too but never soil that clumps.

Propagation: Root in water

Pilea Depressa is pretty easy to propagate and they root in water. Take cuttings between two nodes and keep the clippings in water for about a week. Once the roots start developing, poke them in a planter filled with semi-moist soil and water once weekly.

I have added a few stems in water to keep you updated through the process and hopefully I’ll be able to give you all more updates on my gram. If you are not following me, you should coz unfortunately, that’s where the action is.

Talk about people and their lack of reading habits. Haha, I’m only kidding.

Happy Friday to you

Love

Rukmini

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