Coleus 'Love Bird' 12cm / 1L Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Coleus / Painted Nettle 'Love Bird'

Coleus 'Love Bird'

£11.99
Overwinter under coverSun-lovingShade-tolerant
Pot size
12cm / 1L £11.99

FREE tracked delivery on orders over £60

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Description

The Coleus 'Love Bird', one of the most compact of all the painted nettles (Coleus scutellarioides, formerly Solenostemon), is a jewel-box of a foliage plant. Each small, scalloped leaf is painted deep rose-red and neatly edged in bright lime-yellow, carried on a tidy, self-branching mound that stays neat all summer. It is the easy way to pack bold, tropical-looking colour into a pot or border with no flowers required.

Coleus is a tender tropical perennial, so in the UK it is grown as a summer plant: stood outside or bedded out from late May once the frosts have passed, then enjoyed right through to autumn. Rated RHS H1c, it will not take frost, but it grows fast and colours up quickly, giving you months of vivid foliage from a single small plant. Treat it as a seasonal star, or keep it going year to year by overwintering a plant or a few cuttings on a bright windowsill.

Keep the compost consistently moist, as coleus is thirsty and sulks if it dries out, and feed every couple of weeks through summer. Pinch out the growing tips regularly and snip off any flower spikes to keep it dense, bushy and brightly coloured. 'Love Bird' is superb in mixed exotic and tropical borders, in summer container schemes, and as fast, low-level colour in a partly shaded spot. See our what to expect through the seasons guide for more on growing tender exotics outdoors.

Part of our wider Hardy Exotics range, every plant is nursery-grown, carefully selected and packed with care to arrive in top condition.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

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What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

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How to care for Coleus / Painted Nettle 'Love Bird'

Plant me in full sun and bring me under cover before the frosts.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
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About Coleus / Painted Nettle 'Love Bird'

Coleus 'Love Bird' needs full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is frost tender and must come under cover for winter.

Good for

Exotic Borders Pots & Containers Shade

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

RHS H1c · Tender · frost-free only

tender (H1c), so protect from frost and bring under cover over winter.

Position

Full sunPartial shadeEast-facingSouth-facingWest-facingSheltered

full sun to partial shade. Good light keeps the red and yellow contrast strong, with a little afternoon shade in the hottest spots to prevent scorch.

Soil

ChalkClayLoamSandMoist but well-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH

fertile, humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil, or a quality peat-free compost in containers and pots.

Watering

Keep the compost consistently moist through summer, as coleus is thirsty and wilts quickly if it dries out. Water freely in warm weather and feed every two weeks with a balanced liquid feed. Pinch out the shoot tips and remove any flower spikes to keep growth bushy and the colour at its best. Read moreShow less

Keep the compost consistently moist through summer, as coleus is thirsty and wilts quickly if it dries out. Water freely in warm weather and feed every two weeks with a balanced liquid feed. Pinch out the shoot tips and remove any flower spikes to keep growth bushy and the colour at its best.

Mature size

Height20-30 cm
Spread20-30 cm

Reaches full size in 1 year

Growth habit

Bushy

Flowering

Jul-Sep

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Evergreen (stays evergreen only when kept frost-free over winter)

Pruning

Grown for its foliage. Through the growing season, pinch out the growing tips and snap off any flower spikes as they appear to keep the plant bushy and the leaf colour vivid.

Toxicity

Harmful if eaten, and the sap can irritate skin. Toxic to dogs and cats (contains aromatic essential oils), causing vomiting, diarrhoea and drooling if chewed. Grown for ornamental foliage only; keep away from pets and children.

Native range

SE Asia to Australia (species)

Family

Lamiaceae

Also known as

Coleus 'Love Bird'

Genus

Coleus
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

Do coleus come back every year in the UK?

Not outdoors. Coleus is a tender tropical perennial (RHS H1c) that cannot survive UK winter frost, so in the garden it is grown as a summer plant. You can keep it going from year to year by bringing a plant indoors to a bright, frost-free windowsill over winter, or by taking quick, easy cuttings in late summer. See our what to expect through the seasons guide for seasonal care.

Can I grow Coleus 'Love Bird' outdoors?

Yes, through the warmer months. Stand the pot outside or bed it out from late May, once nights stay reliably above about 10C, in a sunny or lightly shaded, sheltered spot. It is superb in summer pots and containers and in exotic borders, then lifted or replaced before the first autumn frosts.

Do coleus do better in pots or in the ground?

Both work well. In the ground it quickly knits into a colourful summer display, while in pots and containers it is easy to move into the best light and to bring under cover as autumn approaches. Containers also give you full control over watering, which this thirsty plant appreciates.

How do I keep the leaf colour bright?

Give it plenty of light. Bright conditions with some direct sun bring out the strongest red-and-yellow contrast, though harsh midday sun in the hottest spots can scorch the foliage, so a little afternoon shade helps. Pinch out the growing tips regularly and snip off any flower spikes to keep the plant bushy and the colour vivid.

How do I overwinter Coleus 'Love Bird'?

Before the first frost, either pot up the whole plant and move it to a bright, frost-free spot above about 10C, such as a windowsill or greenhouse, or take 4 to 6 cm softwood cuttings, which root easily in water or compost. Keep winter watering light. Our what to expect guide has more on overwintering tender exotics.

Is Coleus 'Love Bird' poisonous to pets?

Yes, mildly. Coleus contains aromatic oils that are toxic to cats and dogs if eaten, and the sap can irritate skin, so keep it away from pets and children who might chew the leaves. It is grown purely for its ornamental foliage and is not for eating.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 48 hours with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
Why Grow Tropicals

Plants delivered the way they deserve

Packaged with Care

Packaged with Care

Every order is hand-packed in eco-friendly, protective packaging - refined through thousands of deliveries to ensure your plant arrives healthy, hydrated, and looking its best.

Backed by our Live Arrival Guarantee.

Perfect for Gifting

Perfect for Gifting

From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

Delivered fresh, beautiful, and gift-ready.

Sustainability at Heart

Sustainability at Heart

All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

Good for your home - and the planet.

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Coleus 'Love Bird'
£11.99