At a glance
The lipstick plant – Aeschynanthus radicans and its many cultivars – is named for the dramatic tubular red or orange flowers that emerge from dark maroon calyx tubes, resembling a lipstick being pushed from its case. It is an epiphytic plant native to tropical Southeast Asia, where it grows anchored to trees in warm, humid rainforest conditions. In UK homes it works beautifully as a trailing plant in a hanging basket or high shelf where its long stems can cascade down, and when cared for correctly it flowers generously in spring and summer.
The reason many lipstick plants fail to flower – or decline slowly after purchase – is that UK conditions are almost the opposite of what the plant evolved to cope with. Our winters are dark and cool, our heated homes are dry, and tap water in much of England is hard and alkaline. None of these conditions are ideal, but all of them are manageable with a few adjustments to care routine. This guide covers everything needed to keep a lipstick plant healthy year-round and to get it flowering reliably.
Ideal Growing Conditions
The lipstick plant needs bright indirect light – it should be within 1-2 metres of a south, east or west-facing window, but not in a position where direct midday sun falls on the leaves. Direct summer sun scorches the foliage and causes the trailing stems to lose their lustre and turn pale. In UK winters, move the plant as close to the window as possible without touching the glass, as cold glass can damage leaves and the reduction in daylight from October to February significantly affects flowering potential the following spring.
Temperature stability matters more than people expect. Lipstick plants handle warm rooms well but suffer when temperatures drop below 13 degrees Celsius, which can happen on cold windowsills in winter or near draughty doors. They also dislike cold draughts even when temperatures are acceptable – an air-conditioned office or a position near a frequently opened window in winter will cause leaf drop and stem die-back even if the average temperature seems fine.
Watering and Humidity
The lipstick plant needs to be kept consistently moist but never waterlogged. Because it is an epiphyte by origin, its roots are adapted to take up moisture quickly and then dry partially before the next watering – sitting in permanently wet compost causes root rot faster than it does in many other houseplants. In practice, this means watering when the top centimetre of compost is dry, watering thoroughly until water runs from the drainage hole, then allowing excess to drain completely before putting the pot back. In summer this may mean watering every five to seven days; in winter, every ten to fourteen days.
Humidity is genuinely important for this plant, more so than for many other common houseplants. UK homes in winter typically drop to 30-40% relative humidity once central heating is running – significantly below the 50-70% the plant prefers. Misting is often recommended but provides only brief relief and can encourage fungal problems if the leaves stay wet for extended periods in low light. A more effective approach is placing the pot on a tray of pebbles kept topped up with water, or grouping it with other humidity-loving plants. These methods raise local humidity continuously rather than intermittently.
Feeding and Repotting
Feed the lipstick plant with a liquid fertiliser every two weeks from March to September. Because it is an epiphyte, it benefits from a fertiliser formulated for orchids or epiphytes rather than a standard all-purpose houseplant feed – these have a nutrient ratio better matched to a plant that in nature would derive nutrition from rainwater, decomposing organic matter and the bark it grows on, rather than from a nutrient-rich soil. A balanced feed at half the recommended dose is the alternative if a specialist product is not available.
Lipstick plants do not need frequent repotting and actually perform better when slightly pot-bound – a restricted root system encourages the plant to put energy into flowering rather than root and leaf production. Repot only when roots are visibly circling the base or emerging in quantity from drainage holes. Go up one pot size only and use a free-draining mix: a combination of standard peat-free houseplant compost with added perlite at a 3:1 ratio works well. Spring is the best time to repot, giving the plant the growing season to establish in fresh compost before winter.
How to Encourage Flowering
Getting a lipstick plant to flower reliably is the question most owners struggle with, and the answer lies almost entirely in light and a winter cool period. The plant sets flower buds in response to a combination of bright light and a slight reduction in temperature – typically 15-18 degrees Celsius – during the months of October to February. This mimics the seasonal variation it would experience in its native habitat. A plant kept at a steady 22 degrees in a warm room through winter will rarely produce the bud set that leads to spring flowering.
A practical approach for UK gardeners is to move the lipstick plant to a cooler room – an unheated spare room, a bright hallway or a conservatory that is not frost-free – from October to February. Temperatures of 15-18 degrees with bright light through the window are close to ideal for triggering flowering. Reduce watering significantly during this period and stop feeding entirely. When the plant is moved back to a warmer position in spring and feeding resumes, bud set follows reliably within four to six weeks if the cool period was maintained for at least eight weeks.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Troubleshooting Common Problems
Propagation
Lipstick plants propagate readily from stem tip cuttings taken in spring or early summer. Cut a healthy stem section 8-12cm long just below a leaf node, remove the lower leaves, and allow the cut end to callous over for an hour or two before inserting into moist propagation compost or perlite. Keep in bright indirect light at around 20 degrees Celsius and maintain high humidity by placing a clear plastic bag loosely over the cutting. Roots typically appear within three to five weeks.
The cuttings do not need rooting hormone but benefit from warmth at the base – a propagator or a pot placed on top of a warm surface speeds rooting significantly. Once roots are established and the cutting shows new growth from the tip, pot on into the standard free-draining mix described in the feeding section. Young plants from cuttings taken in spring will often flower for the first time in their second year if given the correct cool-period treatment through their first winter.
Prune after flowering to encourage bushy growth and repeat blooms. Once the current season’s flowers fade, cut back the stems that flowered to about two-thirds of their length. This prevents the plant from becoming straggly and stimulates new side shoots, each of which can produce flowers in the following season. Unpruned lipstick plants tend to become increasingly sparse, with long bare stems and flowers only at the very tips.
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