Species · genus Tradescantia · Commelinaceae

Purple Queen

Tradescantia pallida (Rose) D.R.Hunt

Also known as: Purple Heart · "Wandering Jew" · Purpleheart · Wandering Jew

Growth habit

subshrub

Native range

Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest

Reference · T. pallida

Cultivars of T. pallida

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under T. pallida 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.

Tradescantia pallida is a trailing subshrub native to warm regions of Mexico, where it grows in sunny, well-drained ground and stores some moisture in its fleshy stems. Give it the brightest indirect light you can; some direct sun deepens its color, but keep the soil on the dry side. Water only when the top inch of mix has dried out, and let it approach dryness between waterings to avoid rotting the stems.

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 7-14d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 14 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

10–29 °C

Soil mix

Gritty, well-draining mix; tolerates lean soil

Propagation

Stem cuttings root quickly in soil or water

Fertilizing

Monthly balanced feed; sparse feeder overall

Growth rate

Fast

Flowering

Small pink flowers set off the deep purple foliage

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Toxic to cats & dogs

Inch plant / wandering dude — irritant sap; dermatitis, mild GI upset. 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.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Purple Queen yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.