Kitchen Garden Forum

I have been given one of those small Buddleia pot plants for Xmas. It is supposed to be tricoloured but it is actually 3 wee plants in one pot & obviously the picture on the tag looks great but no instructions to go with it. I am really pleased as the bees will love it so might be potted on at the allotment to aid pollination - BUT - what do I do with it currently?

Each plant is only about 3" high & although a few leaves have dried off it is already getting nice new growth at the top. The pot is only 12cm & in just a few days the roots are showing at the bottom & it is sitting on the kitchen counter, catching some sun, out of draughts, not heated & looks way small. Basically I need to know everything about keeping this/these plants happy. Soil type, constrict roots or pot on & on, what to feed etc?

Cheers in advance as normal!

Westi, in my experience buddleia will take any treatment which gets thrown at it! But I have only experienced the outdoors.

I'd treat it like an ordinary, unexceptional house plant, which is what you are doing at the moment. Dr Hessayon doesn't list ordinary Buddleia in his houseplant book. He only lists:- "Nicodemia diversifolia also called Buddleia indica" which I would NOT have recognised as "Buddleia"

Westi, I,d put it in the coolest room you have and perhaps pot on if roots are coming through the base of the pots already. These plants shoot up like wizards and Yyou really don't want it growing too much until it can be planted in itw final location when it will probably grow like w rocket. They really need to be generously pruned back every year.

I don't know whether the tricoloured variety grows any differently from the "normal" one but choose yiur final location carefully or they can become a bit of "thug". Currently I,d just water eniugh to keep the compost barely damp.

Thanks Stephen & Primrose.

I will pot on as the roots are showing just a bit at the bottom & put it in the porch as that is the coldest spot in the house & the kitchen will certainly get warmer over the weekend, but it could come back in there afterwards. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out, it is recommended for pots so don't know if it is a dwarf variety or is not going to like it & die so will do a bit of research when my friends finds where she bought it online so I can check the details.