careyfashion.com Carey Fashion
With its watermelon-like leaves and purple stems, the watermelon peperomia is the next plant to add to your houseplant collection. Before you apologize that you already have enough houseplants, you can never have enough. Here’s our grower’s guide to the only watermelon peperomia.
Watermelon peperomia or Peperomia argyreia got its name because its leaves closely resemble those of the watermelon skin. This plant falls into the easy-growth category and is actually great for new green thumbs, it is native to South America and grows up to 30cm tall so great for the Australian climate and small spaces.
In spring and summer you can see flowers, although the thin stalks look more like ears of corn than flowers.
care instructions
To keep your watermelon Peperomia happy and thriving, you need to follow a few simple rules:
Keep them in a bright room but out of direct sunlight.
Don’t overwater them, water them just enough to slightly moisten the soil.
Fertilize them once or twice a year with a light natural fertilizer.
You will rarely need to repot these guys as they love to grow nice and compact.
Also, watermelon peperomia is non-toxic to cats and dogs.
Troubleshooting
Leaves look a bit washed out or dull – your plant is sunburned! Put it out of direct sunlight
Lower leaves droop – your plant is thirsty. Place it in a small bowl of water and let it drink as much as it needs.
Leaves turn brown at the tips – too much water! Set up the watering can and leave it for at least a couple of days.
How to procreate
Once you have a plant, it’s easy to grow more! Simply cut off a healthy leaf at the bottom of the stem and place it in a jar of water in a sunny spot. It takes between 6-8 weeks but soon you will see white roots appear. When a few roots have grown between 3 and 4 cm long, plant in soil and enjoy.
Another way to propagate your Peperomia is to take a leaf cutting. Cut the leaf in half horizontally and stick it in the ground, cut side down.
