Solenostemon scutellaroides Mezmerize®​ Chocolate Lime Edge seeds - Coleus

Sow the seeds of Coleus Mezmerize® Chocolate Lime Edge to grow an ornamental plant prized for its decorative foliage with striking contrasts. Its bushy, compact habit makes it an excellent choice for borders, flowerbeds and pots. Its finely toothed leaves display a deep chocolate shade enhanced by a bright lime-green edge. Easy to grow, it thrives in rich, well-drained soil kept moist, with a preference for semi-shade, although it tolerates sun if soil moisture is adequate. Sensitive to cold, it is grown as an annual outdoors or as a houseplant. Sow it in spring or year-round indoors.

From the Lamiaceae family, like nettle and basil, Coleus, also known as Solenostemon or Plectranthus, are frost-tender shrubby perennials, native to Asia and tropical Africa. They have as botanical synonyms: Plectranthus scutellarioides, Coleus hybridus, Coleus blumei var. verschaffeltii, Solenostemon scutellarioides, Coleus saundersiae, Ocimum scutellarioides, Coleus verschaffeltii, Coleus pumilus, Coleus blumei. They are also known as False Skullcap Plectranthus, Flame Nettle, Bishop's Carpet or Old Bachelor. They are mainly grown for their ornamental foliage, but they also offer a spike-like flowering in summer. Their small two-lipped flowers with an elongated lower lip are typical of Lamiaceae. Flowers are usually removed as soon as buds appear so that the plants do not exhaust themselves producing seeds, and maintain generous foliage. Coleus Mezmerize® Chocolate Lime Edge forms a clump of 40 to 50cm in all directions in one season. The final dimensions are similar in the ground and in a pot. The leaves are finely toothed. Mezmerize® Chocolate Lime Edge has been selected for its foliage, which is better able to withstand heat and sun. Even in low-humidity conditions, its leaves remain well-developed and do not curl due to heat stress. The stems are quadrangular, a typical characteristic of Lamiaceae. The root system is fibrous and shallow. Although mainly grown for its foliage, it produces small bluish flower spikes, usually at the end of the season.

In a play of light and contrasts, Coleus Mezmerize Chocolate Lime Edge reveals its full intensity when combined with foliage in deep or metallic shades. In a pot on a shaded terrace, it makes a focal point alongside a Plectranthus coleoides 'Variegata', which brings a soft, velvety texture to the display. In the ground, it integrates well into a semi-shaded flowerbed, where the purple brilliance of an Alternanthera ‘Purple Knight’ further accentuates the relief of its foliage. Playing on contrasts and layering, it becomes a structuring element in architectural or contemporary gardens, where its colourful foliage replaces flowering, creating a display from spring until the first frosts. Combined with begonias with a soft habit or impatiens with delicate flowering, it creates an elegant, refined atmosphere, ideal for gardens with a tropical feel.