Species · genus Tradescantia · Commelinaceae

Inchplant

Tradescantia zebrina Bosse

Also known as: Wandering Jew · Inch-plant · Cockroach Grass · Purple Wandering Jew · Silver Inch Plant

Growth habit

subshrub

Native range

Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Nicaragua, Panamá

Reference · T. zebrina

Cultivars of T. zebrina

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

No named cultivars catalogued under T. zebrina 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 trailing subshrub from the warm forests and clearings of Mexico and Central America, with fleshy, water-holding stems that resent staying wet. Give it a bright spot out of direct midday sun, and water when the top inch of mix has dried; the leaves keep best color in good light without scorching. Its succulent stems mean it recovers from drought far more readily than from soggy roots.

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

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 10 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

13–27 °C

Soil mix

Well-draining potting mix with perlite

Propagation

Stem cuttings root readily in water or soil

Fertilizing

Balanced liquid feed monthly while growing

Growth rate

Fast

Flowering

Small lavender flowers occasionally; grown for striped 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 5-10d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Inchplant 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.