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Plectranthus amboinicus
Lamiaceae FAMILY

Plectranthus amboinicus

Plectranthus amboinicus

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Perennial
Growth—

Plectranthus amboinicus is a plant that ranges from warm temperate areas with dry, mild winters to tropical areas with dry to wet climates[1, 2]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 28°c, but can tolerate 10 - 36°c[1]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 2,000 - 2,600mm, but tolerates 700 - 4,000mm[1]. Succeeds in full sun or shade[3, 4]. Prefers a fertile well-drained soil in partial shade[5]. Grows best in a light soil[3]. A rampant-growing, creeping plant, succeeding well in a woodland[4]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 6.5, tolerating 5 - 7[1]. The plant is widely cultivated for ornament, food and medicines. It sometimes escapes from cultivation and becomes naturalised on disturbed ground[5]. It can form dense carpets in shaded dry forest and is said to be invasive on some Pacific Islands[6, 2]. There is at least one named variety[7].

Propagation

Seed - sow in well-drained soil, covering lightly with a thin layer of sand, and place in a warm but shaded spot. The seed germinates in about three weeks[8]. Cuttings - very easy, shoots put in a pot of water will root quickly[4]. Division. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Plectranthus+amboinicus>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  2. [2]Invasive Species Compendium — http://www.cabi.org ↩︎An immense resource - in depth information on over 900 species of invasive plants (it also has information on animals, fungi etc).
  3. [3]Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. — Bown. D. · Dorling Kindersley, London. · 1995 · ISBN 0-7513-020-31 ↩︎A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
  4. [4]Tropical Food Gardens — Norrington. L. · Bloomings Books (Melbourne) · 2001 · ISBN 1-876473-41-x ↩︎Excellent little book giving some basic information on a range of plants.
  5. [5]Tropical Ornamentals; A Guide — Whistler. W. Arthur. · Timber Press Inc. Oregon. · 2000 · ISBN 0-88192-448-2 ↩︎An excellent little guide to some of the more commonly cultivated ornamental plants of the Tropics, often giving some information on the plants other uses.
  6. [6]Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk — http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html ↩︎A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
  7. [7]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  8. [8]PlantZAfrica.com — http://www.plantzafrica.com ↩︎An excellent site giving detailed descriptions and uses of many S. African plants.
  9. [9]Medicinal Plants in Vietnam — Nguyen Van Dan & Doan Thi Nhu · World Health Organisation · 1989 · ISBN 92 9061 101 4 ↩︎An excellent book, giving information on over 200 plants, their medicinal compounds and applications.
  10. [10]Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants — http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 ↩︎Terse details of a huge range of useful plants.
  11. [11]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
  12. [12]Plectranthus: A review of ethnobotanical uses — Lukhoba C.W.; Simmonds M.S.J.; Paton A.J. · 2006 ↩︎An excellent guide to the uses of Plectranthus species, giving the basic uses and the literature supporting this.
  13. [13]Medicinal Plants of the Guianas — DeFilipps, R. A.; Maina, S. L.; & Crepin, J. · Smithsonian Museum · http://botany.si.edu/bdg/medicinal/index.html ↩︎A down-loadable PDF document of a book in pre-publication awaiting illustration. An excellent, if rather terse, guide to the traditional medicinal uses of the plants of the region
  14. [14]Plectranthus: A plant for the future? — Rice L.J.; Brits G.J.; Potgieter C.J.; Van Staden J. · 2011 ↩︎A review of the Plectranthus species with potential as economic plants
  15. [15]CosIng — http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/ ↩︎CosIng is the European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients.