Buddha's-lamp

Buddha's-lamp Care

Mussaenda philippica

What is the plant

Mussaenda philippica is a plant species in the family Rubiaceae that grows as a shrub or small tree. It is also known as Tropical Dogwood and is native to the Philippines, Indonesia and New Guinea. Elsewhere, it`s cultivated as an ornamental plant.

Mussaenda philippica is a tropical shrub or sub-shrub that will grow to 10ft tall in tropical areas, but more likely will reach 1-3ft tall in containers. Clusters (corymbs) of small, tubular flowers with five spreading lobes bloom in summer, however it is the large and colorful, ovate, leaf-like sepals (to 3" long) that provide the real ornamental display. Some individual flowers in each cluster will develop a single enlarged sepal. Elliptic to ovate, bright green leaves (to 6" long). Hybrids typically feature flowers in red and/or yellow with showy sepals of white, bright red or pink.

If you’ve recognized any mistakes feel free to notify us about it. This would help us to provide only the best-quality information.

Lighting

Full Sun

Hardiness zone

9b - 11

Difficulty

Medium

How to Care for the Plant

Water
The plant needs regular watering to keep the soil moist at all times. However, don`t let it sit in water.
Fertilizer
Apply a general garden fertilizer (10-30-10) to the container plants monthly (for garden plants 3-4 times a year). Water thoroughly after feeding. It is also a good idea to make foliar applications three to four times per year using a nutritional spray containing all the essential trace elements, especially manganese and zinc.
Sunlight
Grow in full sun to part shade. Best bract/sepal color will be in full sun but plants also appreciate some mid-day filtered sun in hot climates.

Disease diagnosis

Check your plant’s health

Ease your plant care routine with PlantIn's personalized system.

Soil
Use a well-draining potting mix.
Temperature
The plant can be grown in the areas with the lowest winter temperatures of −1.1 °C (30 °F). But the best option is to bring containers indoors in fall when night temperatures start dropping into the 50s°F.
Container
It can be grown in a large container and moved inside for winter. Choose a pot with enough drainage holes.