Description
Herbaceous perennial and evergreen plant, with a typical ground cover and prostate habit. It comes from South America and it has a very high growth rate so it can cover large area in a very short time. It has thin and herbaceous quadrangular stems which emit branches but also roots from nodes. Leaves are small, opposite, oblong and irregular, with a tomentose lower page and a dark green upper page. From late spring to late autumn, there is the blooming: flowers are tubular, cerise and gathered in numerous and rounded inflorescences at the apex of the current year's branches.
Suggestions
It's a rustic and easy to grow plant, it needs a sunny and bright position and in different conditions it will grow less and its blooming will be poorer. It is suitable to any kind of soil even if it prefers the fertile, light, and well drained ones: it doesn't tolerate idrical stagnations that could cause dangerous illnesses or even bring the plant to death. It tolerates drought, but regular summer waterings stimulate both growth and blooming. It doesn't fear frost, if it is not intense and prolonged. It tolerates sea winds salt so it is ok for the realization og green coastal gardens. Usually it doesn't need strong prunings, at most in spring vegetative regrowth it's possible to shorten the main stems in order to make thicker the flowerbed created by the plant. It's ideal for pots or containers, above all the hanging ones from which stems can fall in an ornamental way. in the groundh it can be used to cover quickly whole flowerbeds or the base of shrubs and trees. It can be planted on small walls from which it will fall down softly, or even it can be used in row to realize coloured low borders.
