How to care for a peperomia plant

One of the main things to consider when taking care of a peperomia plant is its position. These plants come from tropical jungles, where some species grow on trees and others on the jungle floor. To keep your peperomia happy this means that their ideal position is one where they get bright, indirect light. They don't need or enjoy direct sun.

Although some peperomia have the common name radiator plant, avoid putting plants right next to a radiator as their compost will dry out quickly. The name is more likely to refer to the fact that peperomia need warm air, so keep plants in a room where temperatures don't drop below 10ºC in winter.

A healthy peperomia should live for 5-10 years at least. As long as you take care not to overwater them, these are easy plants that are perfect for beginners.

How to grow peperomia

Place peperomia in a well lit room, but keep it out of direct sunlight. Peperomia plants need humidity so a bathroom or kitchen would be ideal, but they will thrive in other rooms if you mist regularly. Their ideal temperature is 18-24ºC.

Where to grow peperomia

Peperomia grow best in bright indirect light. They can tolerate low light but in a shadier spot, it's a good idea to reduce watering. Keep them out of direct sunlight, which will scorch the leaves. Keep away from radiators and draughts and ideally, place in a room that gets high humidity. Mist in the summer to keep up humidity or stand your plant on a tray of moist pebbles.

How to plant peperomia

Most peperomia are slow growing and will only need repotting every three to four years. Use a general, peat-free house plant compost, potting up your plant into a container one size bigger than its current pot. If you go up too many sizes, water retained in the excess compost can lead to root rot. It'll need around an extra inch around the root ball.

How to care for peperomia

Wait until the compost is dry enough to look pale before watering. Water to dampen the compost surface all around the plant. Allow the compost to dry out again before re-watering. Peperomias are prone to root rot if overwatered. Watering with rainwater is good for house plants as it contains fewer chemicals, but tap water is fine too. You can boil tap water and let it cool to remove some of the chemicals but many people will not have time for this and, for peperomia, watering when your plant needs it is more important.

Mist peperomia regularly, especially in a room with low humidity. Keep peperomia away from radiators as central heating dries out the air and lowers humidity.

Feed peperomia every month during the summer with a general houseplant fertiliser.

How to prune peperomia

Use a clean pair of scissors or snips to remove any dead foliage or yellowing leaves. Trim lightly if you want to reduce the size of your plant.

How to propagate peperomia

Peperomia are easy to propagate from cuttings. Either take cuttings from the stems or use the leaves to create new plants. For stem cuttings, cut a shoot around 8cm long. Cut just below a node and remove any leaves from the bottom half of the stem. Place the cutting in a jar of water until it develops roots and new growth. Replace the water every week until this happens. Once it has got a good root system, pot it into compost to grow it on. Alternatively, use the leaves to make more plants for free.

Step 1

Choose a young, healthy, mature leaf to take a cutting from and carefully snip it off the parent plant.

Step 2

To help reduce moisture loss, cut the leaf in half with a sharp pair of scissors, making a clean horizontal cut halfway through the leaf.

Step 3

Insert the cuttings cut side down, into trays of a just damp 50:50 mix of perlite and peat-free, multi-purpose compost.

Step 4

Cover the tray with a clear plastic lid and keep out of direct sun, in a humid spot at 20C. Remove the cover when the cuttings have rooted.

Common problems for peperomia plants

Pests that might affect your peperomia plant include mealybugs. Mealybugs are sap sucking insects that leave a sticky substance called honeydew on leaves. This can cause a sooty mould to grow. Remove mealybugs with tweezers if there aren't too many. For large infestations you may have to use a soapy spray or a biological control.

Peperomia are easy plants to look after and generally disease-free, but keep an eye out for any of the following common problems for house plants, which can usually be fixed by altering your watering regime.

Yellow lower leaves or leaves with brown edges - this could mean your plant is not getting enough water.

Brown roots or yellow, curled leaves could mean that you are overwatering. Look out for rotten areas or mouldy flowers and leaf loss.

Mould on the soil could mean that your peperomia is getting too much shade or that you have given it too much water.

Best varieties of peperomia to grow

Watermelon peperomia (Peperormia argyreia) is named because of its leaves, which resemble the skin of a watermelon. Place it in a warm spot out of direct light. It's easy going and compact, only growing to around 30cm. Mist occasionally in the summer to maintain humidity.

Height x Spread: 30cm x 30cm

• Buy Peperomia argyreia from Crocus

This peperomia grows to about 25cm. It's evergreen with fleshy leaves that can be all green or variegated. The variegated variety grows to about 10cm and has creamy to white edges. Both types produce greenish white flowers but are grown primarily for their foliage. It can tolerate low light levels.

H x S: 10cm x 20cm

• Buy Peperomia obtusifolia from Crocus

Perk up your shelves with a trailing peperomia. Peperomia prostrata has red stems and small circular leaves. The shape of the leaves is similar to a turtle's shell with a pattern of light and dark green markings. In the growing season it also sometimes produces spikes of brown flowers.

H x S: 20cm x 50cm

• Buy Peperomia prostrata from Thompson & Morgan

Also known as Emerald ripple, Peperomia caperata has ridged leaves with red undersides. It has similar needs to most peperomia, enjoying bright indirect light and humidity. Peperomia caperata 'Rosso' is a popular cultivar.

H x S: 40cm x 40cm

• Buy Peperomia caperata 'Rosso' from Hortology

A variety known as 'String of Coins' with tiny glossy round leaves on red trailing stems that make it perfect for placing on a shelf. Peperomia 'Pepperspot' doesn't need regular watering, so it's easy to look after. Water when the top 3cm of compost is dry. You can trim to keep it neat if it gets too bushy.

H x S: 20cm x 50cm

• Buy Peperomia 'Pepperspot' from Happy Houseplants

If you want glossy foliage, this is a beautiful variety with large tear drop shaped leaves in a deep green. Common cultivars include 'Raindrop', which is slightly taller, at 30cm, than the species.

H x S: 30cm x 20cm

• Buy Peperomia polybotrya 'Raindrop' from Crocus

'Hope' is a trailing peperomia with small, thick leaves. At first the stems will grow up, but when they're long enough will trail over the side of the pot, making it a great choice for a hanging basket or to display on a shelf.

H x S: 15cm x 30cm

• Buy Peperomia 'Hope' from Houseplant.co.uk

This is a creeping variety that reaches no taller than 10cm when mature and has small leaves, up to 1cm across. It's also known as the trailing Jade plant and sometimes produces spikes of yellow flowers.

H x S: 10cm x 20cm

• Buy Peperomia rotundifolia from Crocus