Species · genus Justicia · Acanthaceae
White Shrimp Plant
Justicia betonica T.Anderson, 1867
Also known as: Squirrel's Tail · Paper Plume · White Justicia
Cultivars of J. betonica
The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.
No named cultivars catalogued under J. betonica yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.
Guide
The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.
A Widespread Acanthad
This is Nicoteba betonica, a perennial or subshrub in the Acanthaceae family, long known to many gardeners under its older name, Justicia betonica. It has been shuffled through more than two dozen synonyms over the centuries, a sign of how widely it has been collected and described.
Source: Kew
Out of Tropical Africa
Its native range stretches across tropical and southern Africa and on through the Indian Subcontinent to Myanmar, taking in countries from Senegal and Angola to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. People have since carried it further afield, and it now grows as an introduced plant in places as scattered as Hawaii, Costa Rica, Panama, and the Solomon Islands. In its home range it favors the seasonally dry tropical biome, the kind of habitat that dries out for part of the year.
Source: Kew
A Plant Put to Use
Kew records this species as a perennial or subshrub, a modest and flexible growth habit shared across the wider Justicia genus, whose members are generally recognized by their lip-shaped flowers. Beyond ornament, it has a working life: it is used as animal fodder, as food for invertebrates, in traditional medicine, and for various environmental purposes.
Source: Kew
Care recipe
The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.
Care notes are early — not yet verified
- Light
- ai:claude-opus-4-8
- Water
- ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d)
- Humidity
- ai:claude-opus-4-8
- Soil
- ai:claude-fable-5
- Care
- ai:claude-fable-5
Bright, indirect
≈ every 10 days
Medium
16–29 °C
Fertile, moisture-retentive well-draining mix
Stem cuttings rooted in moist mix
Balanced liquid feed monthly in the growing season
Moderate
White bracts veined pink; occasional indoors
Not yet documented
This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.
Reference images
Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.
Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d) · ai:claude-fable-5
Kept true by its growers
Every fact here carries its source. Grow White Shrimp Plant yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — and a clear photo of your plant are exactly what keep this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.
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