Moses-in-the-Cradle
4.5 out of 5 (52 experiences)
Fast grower
Survivor
About Moses-in-the-Cradle
Tradescantia spathacea, also known as the White Velvet plant, is an exceptionally easy plant to care for and rewards growers with delightful purple blossoms. They are extremely easy to propagate by stem and one plant can give rise to dozens of new ones, which makes them great for sharing. 🤝 As houseplants they often trail, but will also creep along the ground if grown outdoors. Their succulent leaves make them sensitive to frost, so be sure to bring them indoors if your winter temperatures dip below freezing. ❄️
Taxonomy
Tradescantia spathacea
Tradescantia
Commelinaceae
Commelinales
Also known as
Boatlily, Tradescantia Silver, 'Oyster Plant', Roxxo, Rhoeo Dwarf Moses in the cradle and Rhoeo Dwarf
How to care for Moses-in-the-Cradle
How often to water your Moses-in-the-Cradle
every 9
Moses-in-the-Cradle needs 0.5 cups of water every 9 when it doesn’t get direct sunlight and is potted in a 5" pot.
Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.
Water 0.5 cups every
9
Finding light for Moses-in-the-Cradle in your home
a window
Moses-in-the-Cradle may have difficulty thriving, and will drop leaves 🍃, without ample sunlight.
Place it less than 3 feet from a south-facing window to maximize the potential for growth.
Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement of Moses-in-the-Cradle in your home 🏡.
How to fertilize Moses-in-the-Cradle
Most potting soils come with ample nutrients which plants use to produce new growth.
By the time your plant has depleted the nutrients in its soil it’s likely grown enough to need a larger pot anyway.
To replenish this plant's nutrients, repot your Moses-in-the-Cradle after it doubles in size or once a year—whichever comes first.
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Does it just naturally grow down? I'm afraid if I take away that support, it'll snap. Thoughts? #MosesInTheCradle
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I think I broke my plant’s stem #MosesInTheCradle I was watering my plant and moved the stem to high as I was hoping to attach a support pole to it, but it snapped! The stem is not fully deatached but maybe 85%! Is there anything I can do about this? Is it better to try to split and have two plants or try to fix it?
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My little guy started turning brown and idk what to do! New to trying to have plants
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Help please #MosesInTheCradle i need to know what do I need to do to help my new baby girl start thriving again !!! I am repotting her today because I see she has roots growing already, but I am a beginner to all of this and she now has some brown leaves and I was wondering what I should do for that
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Leaves are browning! Is it getting too much sun? #MosesInTheCradle This baby was gifted to me by my plantwiz coworker, he told me that the leaves are like that because of lack of watering. As a past overwaterer I get nervous tend to underwater my plants, but I have been watering this one at least once a week. I am wondering if I should move it somwhere with less sunlight!
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What is happening? The tips of the leaves are dying. How can I fix this? #MosesInTheCradle
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Branching off? #MosesInTheCradle Mine is starting around 10 new branches o.O should I let them all grow or remove some or let it go wild?
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Moses was looking very handsome. His tips are now brown. I repotted him in a pot that drains. I sat a diffuser close for humidity. Today his leaves were droopy. I checked the soil and it was dry, so I added water. What am I doing wrong? #MosesInTheCradle
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Rheo Tricolour HELP Hello! My friend gifted this plant to me and I am trying to follow the care rules provided however she’s not doing well. I’ve never owned one of these before so I would appreciate some tips!
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I got this plant when we downsized my mother who has dementia to assisted living. I am not good with plants but would love to bring this plant back to good health. It is in my bathroom by a frosted glass window. What should I do first
Care Summary for Moses-in-the-Cradle
Moses-in-the-Cradle
Greg recommends:
Water
0.5 cups every 9 days
Placement
< 3ft from a window
Nutrients
Repot after 2x growth
Based on the 4” pot your plant is in, and that it doesn’t get direct sunlight.
What other plant parents say
Fast grower 30
Survivor 24
Large, lush leaves 14
Easy to propagate 13
Browns easily 9
Blooms easily 4
Pest magnet 1
08/18/2021
I bought this guy for the purple leaves. It was one lil stick with a few leaves nothing too exciting. I stuck it in my big window facing South. I kinda forgot to pay attention and watered it every other Monday with my other plants. Now it’s got 3 stocks with leaves galore! He went crazy and I didn’t notice!
From my experience I keep it watered about every 14 days. My apartment is rather humid even though I live in the desert. He gets direct sunshine about an hour at the very most and hangs it in the window seal. I think he is fabulous.
Fast grower
Large, lush leaves
06/18/2021
I got this plant as a “rescue”. She is quite fussy. She only likes the west facing window, with bright, indirect sunlight. Minimal watering- I wait until the soil is nearly dry. Initially, all of her leaves browned and died. But since I put her in the west facing window and mostly ignored her, she has been thriving.
Survivor
Browns easily