Chameleon Plant

//Chameleon Plant

This looks like chameleon plant, aka fishwort. Easily grown in humusy, consistently moist to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Variegated cultivars develop best foliage color in full sun. Plants spread invasively by rhizomes and may need to be restrained by soil barriers or planted in areas where fixed structures such as sidewalks or buildings will restrict spread. In water gardens, grow in containers as marginal aquatic plants. Plants tolerate up to 2” of standing water over the crowns. In natural ponds, plants are also often grown in containers sunk into the mud to maintain control and to avoid unwanted invasive spread. Grow as a ground cover in moist, boggy areas but beware: this plant wants to take over the world.

By | 2016-04-11T14:36:46-07:00 April 11th, 2016|Perennials|1 Comment

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  1. Lori July 2, 2022 at 5:08 pm - Reply

    I am trying to positive ID my plant to be sure it is a houttuynia cordata, chameleon variety (or fish mint plant).

    Is there a plant that looks very similar to chameleon plant, same red, yellow and green colors and purple stems?
    Or could it be a fish plant with possibly the leaf shape slightly different yet in a younger plant, or possibly be a slightly different variety?

    I have a plant that looks only slightly different. Leaves almost have heart-shapes, they narrow into a point at the ends, but they look a little bit skinnier and longer than the heart shape I see in the online photos.

    I purchased the plant at a green house in a 4″ pot and there was only one for sale and it did not have a plant tag with it. I planted it in a hanging pot, and it is growing rather quickly, spreading out with long dangling branches. So it looks and behaves much the same as the fish mint, but the leaves are longer and a slightly narrower.

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