Muehlenbeckia australis 10cm / 0.7L Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Muehlenbeckia australis Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Muehlenbeckia australis Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Pōhuehue

Muehlenbeckia australis

£9.99
Hardy in the UKSun-loving
Pot size
10cm / 0.7L £9.99

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Description

Muehlenbeckia australis, known in New Zealand as pōhuehue or large-leaved muehlenbeckia, is a vigorous twining climber with dark, wiry stems and bright green, broadly oval leaves. It is a different species from the more familiar Muehlenbeckia complexa, the maidenhair or wire vine. Its adult leaves are much larger, typically 2 to 8cm long against roughly 0.5 to 2cm on complexa, and it grows with far more vigour, quickly covering a fence or frame with a dense, leafy screen.

Hardiness and seasons. This is a borderline hardy climber, best suited to mild, coastal and town gardens. It is generally reliable to around -5C and may come through short spells nearer -10C once established in a sheltered spot, though a hard winter can cut it back. It is semi-evergreen, keeping much of its foliage in mild winters and dropping some or all of it in cold ones before regrowing in spring. Small greenish-cream flowers appear in loose, branched sprays, and where male and female plants grow together the females can carry white, fleshy fruits around a dark seed.

How and where to grow. Give it full sun or partial shade and a well-drained soil. It copes with sandy, loamy or clay ground as long as it does not sit waterlogged, and appreciates some moisture in summer. In colder areas a warm, sheltered south or west facing wall or fence is ideal. Provide wires, trellis or a sturdy frame for the stems to twine through. In the wild its stems scramble 10m or more, so allow plenty of room and be ready to trim it back each year. Mulch the root area in autumn to protect young plants through their first winters.

Using it in the garden. Use it to clothe a fence, pergola or old tree stump, to screen an unsightly structure, or to scramble over a sheltered bank in an exotic planting. The larger leaves give a fuller, lusher cover than maidenhair vine, which makes it a good choice for a quick green backdrop behind bold foliage plants. Keep it away from delicate shrubs it could smother, and trim it regularly to keep it where you want it.

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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 Pōhuehue

Plant me in full sun and I will stand a UK winter outdoors.

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 Pōhuehue

Muehlenbeckia australis needs full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is hardy to around −10°C, standing an average UK winter outdoors.

Good for

Exotic Borders Screening & Privacy

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

Semi-Hardy (H3-H4): down to around −5°C. Half-hardy; reliable in mild or coastal gardens, protect in colder areas.

Borderline hardy, roughly H3 to H4: reliable to about -5C and possibly -10C in shelter. Semi-evergreen; may lose leaves or be cut back in a hard winter. Read moreShow less

Borderline hardy, roughly H3 to H4: reliable to about -5C and possibly -10C in shelter. Semi-evergreen; may lose leaves or be cut back in a hard winter.

Position

Full sunPartial shadeSouth-facingWest-facingEast-facingSheltered
Full sun or partial shade; a sheltered south or west facing wall or fence in colder areas. Read moreShow less

Full sun or partial shade; a sheltered south or west facing wall or fence in colder areas.

Soil

ClayLoamSandMoist but well-drainedWell-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH
Well-drained sandy, loamy or clay soil that does not waterlog, with some summer moisture; any pH. Read moreShow less

Well-drained sandy, loamy or clay soil that does not waterlog, with some summer moisture; any pH.

Watering

Water regularly in the first growing season and in dry spells while it establishes. Mulch the roots in autumn and fleece young plants in hard frost. Read moreShow less

Water regularly in the first growing season and in dry spells while it establishes. Mulch the roots in autumn and fleece young plants in hard frost.

Mature size

HeightUp to 10m

Growth habit

Climbing

Flowering

Insignificant

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Semi-evergreen

Pruning

Trim back in spring once the risk of hard frost has passed, removing any winter-damaged growth. Cut it back as needed through the growing season to keep it within bounds. It responds well to hard pruning.

Toxicity

No known hazards are recorded. Plants For A Future lists none, and the fruit is recorded as edible.

Native range

New Zealand, including Stewart Island and the Three Kings Islands, and Norfolk Island

Family

Polygonaceae

Also known as

Muehlenbeckia australis

Genus

Muehlenbeckia
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

How is Muehlenbeckia australis different from Muehlenbeckia complexa?

They are separate species. Muehlenbeckia australis has much larger adult leaves, usually 2 to 8cm long, is far more vigorous, and carries its flowers in loose branched sprays. Muehlenbeckia complexa, the maidenhair or wire vine, has tiny leaves around 0.5 to 2cm long and a finer, more wiry look.

Is Muehlenbeckia australis hardy in the UK?

It is borderline hardy. Expect it to cope with about -5C, and perhaps colder for short spells in a sheltered spot. It does best in mild, coastal or town gardens, and young plants benefit from a mulch and fleece in hard frost.

Is it evergreen?

It is semi-evergreen. It keeps much of its foliage in mild winters but can drop leaves in cold weather, then reshoots in spring.

How big and how fast does it grow?

It is a fast, vigorous climber that can reach around 10m, and in the wild its stems form tangles up to 15m long. Give it a strong support and plenty of room, and trim it to size each year.

Does it produce berries?

Plants are either male or female. Female plants can carry small white, fleshy fruits around a dark seed if a male is growing nearby. The flowers are small and greenish-cream.

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.
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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.

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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.

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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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Muehlenbeckia australis
£9.99