Pellionia is a common houseplant and terrarium plant, suited to growing in a wide variety of conditions. It is often grown in a hanging basket, where it will develop thick cascading foliage. In a terrarium, it makes an excellent ground cover and will cover a substrate rather quickly. It also grows as a shingler if positioned to do so. It is one of the easiest plants to grow in a terrarium.
It’s native to South-East Asia where it’s found in Vietnam, Burma, the Malaysian Peninsula, and Polynesia. Pellionia is a group of plants that have been kept ornamentally since the early 20th century. This species is also called the ‘watermelon’ Pellionia, because of its pinkish-red stem and leaf undersides. Leaves are dark green and silver striped and grow to 3-4″ long. The name ‘pulchra’ is short for pulchritude, meaning beautiful.
