As with every plant in my garden, this one has a story as well. It usually is one of my fellow gardeners who cajole me into trying out plants I am not comfortable with. So we went to the Municipality nursery about two years ago and fell in love with this plant. I was hesitant as I am not great with indoor plants so my friend forced me to buy it. Well, it was not expensive to I caved in and bought it. I killed it once and she made me buy it again and then I killed it again. Finally, I was so disheartened that I told her never again. She waited a while and then rooted a cutting and sent it to me insisting I should try one last time. I was so upset with myself that I just put it away in a corner outside( It was still February) and tried to forget it. But the lady was persistent – my friend as well as the plant. She kept calling and the plant kept beckoning and I caved once more. I repotted it and wow did she surprise me. Growing tall and fast and producing the stinkiest flowers I have ever seen or smelt.
Meet Gynura Aurantica aka Purple Passion. Does beautifully well in the winter in the Gulf outside but needs to be brought in in late April. Keep in a bright spot where there is humidity and water sparingly and she will reward you well. Normally she lives only for a couple of years but make cuttings and stick them in the same pot and she is renewed.
Some information about this pretty houseplant taken from www.Plantingman.com.
Gynura aurantiaca (Commonly known as Purple passion or Velvet plant) is an evergreen perennial, ornamental house plant. This attractive plant can grow up 12 inches tall, the stems sometimes growing straight up but other times reclining against other objects when stems can reach 6.6 ft. Coarsely-toothed, ovate to elliptic, green leaves is covered with reddish-purple hairs. Clusters of tiny, Senecio-like, discoid, orange-yellow blooms appear in winter. Blooms generally don’t appear when plants are grown in lower light. It can be grown indoors in a bright window or out of doors on a patio. It is very great for indoor air purification.
Water when the topsoil is dry and avoid spraying on the leaves. Fertilize about twice a month with a balanced NPK fertilizer or use the fertilizer spikes. Propagation is by stem tip cuttings by dipping them in rooting hormone and putting in a mixture of moist peat moss and perlite but they have grown for me by just sticking in the same pot. Do prune regularly to maintain the bushiness otherwise they tend to become stringy.
Also, remember to prune off the flowers as they really stink. If the foliage is green it could mean too little light. This plant gets very few pests but overwatering could see mealybugs and spider mites so be careful of that.
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