Emerald Ripple Pepper Peperomia caperata
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- pep-er-ROH-mee-uh kap-er-AY-tuh
- Description
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Ripple Peperomia is a tropical plant in the Piperaceae family that is commonly used as a houseplant in temperate climates. It is a tropical evergreen herbaceous shrub that is erect and bushy and grows up to 8" tall. It is epiphtic in the jungles of South America where it is native. This plant is decorative and deeply furrowed nature, its heart-shaped leaves and cream-colored, spiked inflorescence add interest to it. Leaf attachment is sub-peltate and this plant is commonly used as an interior specimen or a desktop plant. The plant gets its common name from its wrinkled green leaves, which are so dark they almost appear purple. It is an easy to grow houseplant tolerant of indoor conditions. It is tolerant of low light for several months without stress. It is intolerant of wet soil, very dry soil, or very drafty sites. It prefers medium light, dry soil, medium light, dry soil, and medium to low relative humidity. It needs bright to medium light such as sun filtered through a thin curtain is ideal. It preforms well with bright, flourecent lights so is ideal for offices. It is suseptible to root rot so use a pourus well-draining potting soil. This plant has no serious pest or disease problems.
Exposure: indirect light
Soil: well-drained, porous potting soil
Quick ID Hints:
- Leaves are heart-shaped and deeply furrowed
- Inflorescence is cream-colored spike
- Petioles are usually pinkish to reddish
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Peperomia
- Species:
- caperata
- Family:
- Piperaceae
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Leaf Cutting
- Root Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Brazil
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Ground Cover
- Perennial
- Habit/Form:
- Erect
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 9b, 10b, 10a, 11a
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Fall
- Summer
- Flower Description:
- White flower spikes of varying lengths in summer and autumn. The flowers are not very colorful and tend to be white to cream in color, they are similar to attenuated Anthuriums or Arum Lilies. They consist of a myriad of small flowers arranged on the stem. They have 2 stamens and no perianths.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leaf Shape:
- Cordate
- Obtuse
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Leaves are cordate, broadly acute to obtuse, have a corrugated surface, cordate, have impressed veins, are in deep rippling folds, are dark glossy green in color, and are sub-peltate. Petioles are 3" in size and green to dull red in color.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Purple/Lavender
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- The leaf-stalk of this plant are red or pink. Stems are erect, unbranched, tough, and dark green or tinged purple.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Houseplants
- Design Feature:
- Specimen
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Heavy Shade
