As if we didn’t already have enough confusion with ‘Purple Something’ cultivars, there are two different Commelinaceae plants which are both known as ‘Purple Plush’.
One is a Tradescantia zebrina, and the other is a Gibasis geniculata. They’re not only different cultivars, they’re different species from entirely different genera. That means they’re not actually very closely related at all. But in the Commelinaceae family, even fairly distant cousins can be very hard to tell apart at a glance.
Both types of ‘Purple Plush’ have sprawling purplish stems with slightly furry green leaves that develop purple pigments in bright light. Here are three tips for figuring out which one you’re looking at.
Note: I don’t have a cultivar page for the G. geniculata yet, and I’m not certain that ‘Purple Plush’ will turn out to be the correct name for this cultivar. I’ve only been ICRA for Gibasis for a month, and I still have lots of research to do!
Leaves
The leaves on both plants have a base colour of bright green when in low light. And they both become stained with purple in the sun. But the exact pattern of those purple stains is different.
On T. zebrina ‘Purple Plush’, the purple develops in neat, uniformly-spaced pinstripes alternating with green. Whereas on G. geniculata, the purple forms a blotchy, uneven stain, usually starting from the centre of the leaf but sometimes washing over the whole surface.
Because the pigments only show up in bright light, this feature might not be recognisable on plants grown indoors or in the shade.
Flowers
If you can see an open flower, the difference is unmistakable. T. zebrina flowers are pinkish-purple and about 1.5cm across, whereas G. geniculata flowers are white and less than 1cm across.
If the flowers aren’t open but there are buds, you can still look at the structure of the flower stalk. On T. zebrina, there’s just a single stalk, with a little boat-like leaf pocket at the end which is full of closely-packed buds. On G. geniculata, there are multiple branching stalks, and the flowers are held out individually away from the leaves.
Stems
This is my favourite identifying feature. It’s present no matter the growing conditions or life stage of the plants, so it’s always reliable. Take a close look at the stems of the plant.
On T. zebrina, the stems always have a freckly, speckled pattern. The base colour might be green or purple, and the speckles might be light or dark, but they’re always there. On G. geniculata, the stems are always completely solid uniform purple.
Found this article useful?
If you want more great resources like this, you can help me keep making them with a regular payment on Patreon.