Species · genus Tradescantia · Commelinaceae

White Velvet

Tradescantia sillamontana Matuda

Also known as: White Velvet Tradescantia · Cobweb Spiderwort · White Gossamer Plant · Cobweb Plant · Wandering Willie · White Fuzzy Spiderwort

Growth habit

perennial or subshrub

Native range

Mexico Northeast

Reference · T. sillamontana

Cultivars of T. sillamontana

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

No named cultivars catalogued under T. sillamontana 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 woolly-leaved perennial from arid northeastern Mexico, this Tradescantia stores moisture in its succulent stems and resents sitting wet. Give it gritty, fast-draining mix and bright indirect light, and water only when the top inch or two of soil has gone fully dry. The dense white hairs that coat its leaves suit it to dry household air, so no added humidity is needed.

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 10-18d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 18 days

Humidity

Low — average room

Temperature

13–29 °C

Soil mix

Very gritty, fast-draining mix; dislikes wet feet

Propagation

Stem cuttings, allowed to callus briefly first

Fertilizing

Light feed monthly in spring and summer

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Small magenta flowers amid the woolly white leaves

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 10-18d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow White Velvet 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.