Sensitive Plant (Mimosa pudica)

Botanical Interests Sensitive Plant Seeds

A sensitive plant, indeed! This unusually shy houseplant rapidly folds in its leaves after being touched, exposing its spines as protection from potential harm. Children and adults alike will love watching it move in response to touch, heat, or light. Its forest green, compound leaflets and globe-shaped, lilac-pink blooms add to its charm. Perennial in the tropics, and as a houseplant; otherwise grown as an annual.

Sowing Information:

• Light: Full sun-part shade. Indoors, place in a bright, sunny location.
• When to Start Inside: 8 to 10 weeks before average last frost. Sow in biodegradable pots to avoid root disturbance when transplanting.
• When to Sow Outside: Not recommended.
• Seed Depth: 1/4 inch
• Seed Spacing: A group of 6 seeds every 18 inches, or in each seed pod
• Thinning: When 1-2  inches tall, thin to 1 plant to its own container
• Days to Germinate: 7-21 days, seeds can be soaked overnight to increase germination rates
• Bloom Period: Blooms in summer

Growing Notes:

• Special Care: Sensitive plant should be grown in containers to avoid naturalization, as it can adversely affect crops, livestock, and native vegetation in tropical regions.
• Variety Information: 1-inch lilac-pink, globe-shaped flowers that appear in summer. The plant has fern-like leaves with reddish-brown prickly stems, and bristled seed pods.
• Attributes: Great as a houseplant