coleus: sun or shade?

Last year we planed coleuses (is that the correct plural?) in between several hostas in our garden, which gets full sun all day. Both the hostas and coleuses grew like crazy and were beautiful. Of course we knew the coleus were only annuals and would not come back; the hostas are back and huge already, looking gorgeous again. I bought a few coleus today and the clerk at the nursey was emphatic that both coleua and hosta are STRICTLY shade plants...even when I said I'd had them in the sun last year, she frowned and looked at me like I had three heads.

So -- tell me: is coleus a SUN or SHADE plant? The ones I got today I'm just keeping in pots on my deck so I can bring them inside over the winter. But the deck gets a lot of sun so I'm confused.

Thanks for any advice.

Coleus is good for one or more but there is no rule I know of outlawing coleusus.

Here is Rosy Dawn's Selection guide for sun and shade. Just look for the name on your plants and match them to the list and see where they suggest you plant them.

Most can take some sun. When in doubt dappled shade should please all of them.

http://www.rosydawngardens.com/Selection_Guide.aspx

(Above is the link I forgot to paste!)

I patronise several garden stores,there are clerks who think they know about plants because they read the tags,this doesnt make them authorities.
I look for the person who buys and thakes care of the perennials and even among the 3 I can think of,have different opinions.
Bright shade or part sun is good. The coleus change color in sun but that depends on the variety ,some just dont like full sun and some just take on brighter color.

It's a help but we all seem to end up with trial and error.

Watch out Beachgirl. Rosy Dawn is addicting.

Hi everyone..I've been watching the Coleus forum for a little while, as I'm starting to grow houseplants.

I enjoyed the link..but the two Coleus I have aren't on their list at all :) I have both a very young Black Dragon and a Wizard Pineapple and I'm having a problem with them. I thought it might be where I have them sitting, but not sure. I'll keep looking around :)

Did you put them in sun or shade?

I would try dappled shade.

They are close to, but not in, a southern window that gets sunlight.. right now, I have them in those biodegradeable cups that can go right into the ground. When I get home, I'm going to transplant them into a regular pot after I rinse off all the roots. I wonder if it's the water in this new apt that I moved into..

It's just such fun trying to figure out why a plant is unhappy!! :)

They are close to, but not in, a southern window that gets sunlight.. right now, I have them in those biodegradeable cups that can go right into the ground. When I get home, I'm going to transplant them into a regular pot after I rinse off all the roots. I wonder if it's the water in this new apt that I moved into..

It's just such fun trying to figure out why a plant is unhappy!! :)

Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread :)

They are close to, but not in, a southern window that gets sunlight.. right now, I have them in those biodegradeable cups that can go right into the ground. When I get home, I'm going to transplant them into a regular pot after I rinse off all the roots. I wonder if it's the water in this new apt that I moved into..

It's just such fun trying to figure out why a plant is unhappy!! :)

Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread :)

Try repotting them and then harden them off: a day or two of shade and back inside again. A day or two of two hours of dappled shade, then back inside again. Another two days of more dappled shade and then plant them.

Though we do tend to treat them like houseplants over the winter they do much better in soil.

Remove the rim of that biodegradable cup before you plant the coleus. I'd also remove the bottom.

That's a great resource. Thanks pirl!

BeachGirl... you might want to be careful planting them out this early... not sure where in NJ you are.. but if the temp drops too low.. they will turn to mush

Best rule of thumb is when night temps are above 50.

Last year was my first with coleus and I didn't have a clue whether they were shade or sun coleus. So I just planted them in pots and set them around. If they looked like they were suffering I just moved them to different light. Overall I'd say most of mine did just fine in full sun.

Clan, are you planning on keeping your coleus as house plants or to move them outside?

They would have to stay as houseplants..I remember my mom having them as houseplants years ago when I was still a kid and I always loved them.
Since I don't have much in the way of bright light (direct sun) due to trees that are around the building, they would have to endure indirect light or even full shade. Sooo.. not sure if I can make any coleus happy :)

coleus love the shade... go for it!!!

In the house they can get kind of leggy without good light, but like onewish1 said, they do like shade so maybe they'll do OK outside for you anyway!

They're likely to fine outside in shade but inside it could be deadly if there is no direct light.

Ok, I kill enough indoor plants without adding more to the list LOL... I've gotten a couple of books from the library to find good houseplants :) Thanks for the input, everyone!

I know I'm coming in late to this conversation, but I wanted to share:

We have a large bed of coleus at church under a 100 year old oak tree. A storm took the tree down and they have been in full sun since July. I figured they were goners when the tree came down, but they have done great! I did add some water crystals to each hole when I planted them to cut down on the demand for watering, so I don't know if that made the difference or not. We have had a fairly dry season but they are still growing. They aren't any special plants, just whatever the garden center was selling.

that's how my containers stay so nice.. I use them all the time

When I was a child 50+yrs ago, wizard and carefree were the only coleus I was exposed to. My DGM had them in a window year round. She potted up new cuttings every 6 months.
When I started gardening again here in Fl, I discovered a new delight; Sun Coleus.
It seems many new varieties were found in Africa and India. They even have weight loss Coleus in India.
These coleus withstood sun and/or shade so now coleus were now great for sun too.
They don't wilt quickly, but the sun does affect the color sometimes.
It can make them bleached out or turn dark ugly colors.
Carefree, Wizard, and Kongs are best kept in the shade.
That's all I know about sun coleus.
;)

Many, if not most, of the newer coleus are bred for two traits (other than wild colors): delayed flowering and sun tolerant. I ordered over thirty different coleus from Rosy Dawn and Gephart's this spring, and without an exception, they have thrived in almost full sun (from 11:00 to at least 5:00, with just early morning and very late afternoon shade). The colors are exceptional and the plants are vigorous. I am training most of them as standards (a two-year process) and some have reached 4', staked.

Among my favorites and ALL thriving in 6 hours of hot sun are: Beckwith's Gem, Blair's Witch, Burning Bush, Confetti, El Brighto, Elfers, Flamingo, Florida Sun Rose, Gold Brocade, Pele, Roaring Fire, Ruby Laser, Watermelon, and Wine Country.

Just have to say Elfers is amazing if you plant it in full sun its mostly red,part sun , more green edges,full shade , it has a gold center. I have had this variety for 3 years.

That is beautiful.

Now that the area is shader late in the season.The plant changes, moresun makes it red,less sun brings out other colors.

just beautiful

Fall coleus colors make it seem like I have new plants.

yes they do

Some coleus want full shade, a few want nearly full sun. Try to identify which one you have and what light it wants. So far, the one I know of that definetly wants lots of sun, is 'Sedona' (the red/orange one in the picture). It's beautiful. I'd protect it from midday sun if you have a lot of 90 degree or higher days. Mine got about 6 hours of sun a day. Also 'freckles' wants a lot of sun, but protection from the hottest. on the other hand 'caroom' wants full shade.

Lovely setting and colors!

With nights in the 40's my coleus are dropping leaves and looking sad.
I have begun to pull the bare ones from the garden.
There are 3 varieties that wont give up and I dont have the heart to ditch them.
Kingwood Karnival
Jungle Love
Mahogany Giant.
Its dark for another 3 hours ,I will take pix then.

I saw my breath outside when I let the dogs out

:(

Ohhhhhhhh - yes.

Finally light enough for the survivors
http://picasaweb.google.com/jgentle4/ColeusSurvivorsOctober20?authkey=Gv1sRgCK3A0oDOt9KFlQE

'Rustic Orange' also does well in sun. This one has been getting sun from about 7am until 1pm. It's still looking pretty good in October, Zone 6 (not sure if Mt. Laurel is 6a or 6b). This is all one plant!

Actually that picture was in September, and a little over exposed. Here is a later and better one. That is 'sedona' over in back to the right.