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Moses-in-the-cradle
Moses-in-the-cradle
Tradescantia spathacea
Plantae
UNCOMMON

Stats

Lifespan
Perennial
Size
Small
Diet
Photosynthetic
Biome
Tropical rainforest
Range
Central America
Movement
Sessile
Breeding
Seeds
Defense
Toxins
Status
Uncommon

About

Moses-in-the-Cradle is a tropical perennial whose sword-shaped leaves are deep green above and vivid purple-red beneath. Its tiny white flowers emerge nestled inside paired purple bracts at the leaf bases — the image that earned it its biblical common name.

Life cycle

  1. 1.
    seed
    A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
  2. 2.
    sprout
    A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
  3. 3.
    sapling
    A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
  4. 4.
    mature
    Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Liliopsida
Order
Commelinales
Family
Commelinaceae
Genus
Tradescantia
Species
Tradescantia spathacea