Coleus Flowers

A slender flower spike adorned with delicate, small blossoms stands out against a dark, blurred background. The vibrant purple and green hues of the flowers provide a striking contrast to the surrounding soft-focus foliage. Coleus scutellarioides was first introduced into Europe from Java in 1851 by a Dutch horticulturalist. At this time, there were few leaf colors and shapes. A wider variety was available by 1877, when the American William Bull offered seeds at 43 US cents each. However, by selecting for seed production, early flowering was inadvertently favored, and leaf color also declined in intensity. Coleus breeding revived in the early 1940s, and by the 1980s, the availability of an improved range of cultivars led to coleus becoming the tenth most important bedding crop in the US. More recently, vegetative propagation has enabled cultivars with novel leaf colors and shapes to be offered for sale. Plants with trailing as well as upright habits are now available.