Getting to know Coleus - Edged Leaf vs Veined Leaf Sun vs Shade - March 2024

Resist the lure of the big box nursery store.  That's something that I'm trying to live-by this Spring.  And, something I'll need to remind myself when it comes to containers.  The past few years, I've picked up some bedding annuals from the orange big box store.  Same with some of the plants that go into our various containers.  One of those has been coleus.  I've used it in containers - but not as a bedding plant where I've installed it as an annual in mass.  

Here's a post about our large, rectangular front porch container from the 2021 season that includes some two-toned coleus.  

Over the years, I've admired coleus as a bedding plant in some municipal applications (like in large, island beds in Downtown Downers Grove) where they've planted one variety in mass.  

I also have come back a few times to this garden tour on the S&K Greenhouse YouTube Channel where Justin (the S&K Nursery guy) visits the home garden of Bruce Duncan.  Justin and S&K have done a similar garden tour with Bruce before and if you watch them, it is easy to see that the two guys admire each other and (I think) that Bruce took up a job at the nursery (as a second act?) for a bit. 

He talks about planting in mass, but he also highlights a couple of varieties of coleus that look like standouts.   

(As a side note, that whole tour is worth the watch. Conifers.  Textures.  Planters.  Bedding Annuals.  All of it is G R E A T.)

Bruce shows off a number of coleus varieties including Redhead, Inferno and Indian Summer and talks about planting them in clusters of seven or more along side other flowering annuals.   

In order to figure out what *might* work for us, I suppose I need to get to know coleus a little bit more.  

Here's a link directly to the Inferno Coleus spot in the video.  And another colony of Inferno coleus.   And a link directly to the Indian Summer Coleus in the same garden tour video.  And RedHead coleus - which Bruce says can take full sun.  

They're all different, but how are they different?   And how do you know which ones can be planted in sun vs. coleus that prefer shade?  

Turns out that BHG has a pair of articles that explain the difference.

Veined-Leaf Coleus tolerate sun. 

Edged-Leaf Coleus prefer shade. 

You can spot the difference - edged-leaf varities have a brighter edge, while veined-leaf varieties have...well...veining.  But, there appears to be *some* that might straddle the middle?  Take for instance, this Campfire Coleus from Select Seed.  See below.  Pretty sure this falls into the Veined-Edge category, no?

Here's another one from Select Seeds - Henna Coleus.  Below is their listing.  The edges are DARKER than the centers.  Means...Veined-Edge, right?  That means can work in sun. 

Recently, I posted some front porch container inspiration that included a large fern flanked by begonias.  If (and that's a big if) I pull that off, that means no coleus in that container.  

Leaving open the option to try some sun-tolerant varieties this year.  Perhaps in the front yard/front porch bed, IB2DWs or even around the patio in back.   The 'sidewalk' garden in this post includes clusters of coleus - so that might be a spot, too.  

Some red ones like Inferno or Campfire or Redhead planted in mass in a group of seven?  Sounds like a (potential) plan for 2024.  

As part of this, thinking that planting some new (to me) annuals in mass/groups should go on my [2024 to-do list].   Sun-tolerant coleus among them.