Genus · Melastomataceae
Medinilla
2 species tracked in Horta’s catalog, and the named cultivars growers keep. Walk down to a species for its full care record, or into a cultivar for its traits and provenance.
Species in this genus
The ones growers meet most — each links to its own page.
Medinilla magnifica
Showy Medinilla
A hemiepiphytic shrub from the Philippine tropics, Medinilla magnifica grows in warm, humid, bright but filtered light beneath the canopy rather than in direct sun. Its epiphytic roots want airflow and a fast-draining mix and will rot if left sitting wet, so water only when the top inch or two of mix has gone dry. As a forest understory plant it genuinely needs elevated humidity to hold its foliage and blooms.
Medinilla formosana
Medinilla formosana is a Melastomataceae native to Taiwan, where its relatives grow in warm, humid forests as understory shrubs and often as epiphytes on tree trunks. Give it bright indirect light out of direct sun, warmth, and steady humidity, and water when the top inch of mix has dried — its fibrous roots resent sitting wet. Use a fast-draining, airy mix and err toward slightly dry between waterings rather than soggy.
About the genus
A genus-level overview — shared traits, history, the botany that ties these plants together — is on its way. For now, the species and cultivars above and below carry the genus.
Kept true by its growers
Medinilla keeps evolving — species move, cultivars appear, IDs get corrected. If you can place an unplaced plant or add a species we’re missing, the whole genus gets truer.
Overview derived from 2 tracked species · the contribute flow arrives with the next slice.