Grow a beautiful portulaca for a lovely, multi-colored cascade of summer flowers. Easy to grow and not at all fussy.

How To Grow And Care For Drought-Tolerant Portulaca

Also known as moss rose, portulaca plants delight gardeners with their vibrant multi-colored blooms. Unique in form and growth habit, portulaca are most commonly grown as an annual. Learning more about this flower’s hardiness and needs for growth can help you decide if this species is a good choice for your own growing space.

Light

Portulaca flowers require full sun to grow their best. In fact, the appearance of blossoms on the plants depends greatly on the light conditions within your garden. On sunny days, you can expect the plants’ flowers to open fully, and begin to close around sunset. Cloud cover or growing them in beds with excess shade may cause the blooms to remain closed.

Water

Portulacas do great in naturalized beds, rock gardens, and xeriscaped spaces. They have an impressive ability to withstand prolonged periods of drought. Still, moss rose plants benefit from routine watering throughout the growing season. Paying careful attention to soil moisture is necessary to avoid overwatering.

Soil

Portulaca plants are a good choice for a wide range of soil types. Though plants grown in well-amended soils produce lush foliage and a large number of blooms, those grown under less-than-ideal conditions can also flourish. Expect moss rose plants to perform well in soils that are sandy, rocky, or even show poor fertility.

Fertilizer

Though portulacas are most commonly grown as annuals, they are considered to be heavy feeders. Routine feeding throughout the growing season helps to keep the flowers blooming and better maintains their overall appearance. Use a water-soluble balanced fertilizer through the summer, like Stutzmans All Purpose Fertilizer, applied according to instructions for safe use.

Problems, Pests & Diseases

Portulaca plants seldom have problems with pests or diseases, however, its good to remain vigilant. Common pests may include slugs and snails that feed on succulent foliage, as well as aphids.

Disease can become a problem under unfavorable growing conditions, specifically, soils that are excessively wet. Most of these problems, like root or crown rot, can be avoided by monitoring moisture levels carefully.

Pruning

In terms of pruning, portulaca plants require very little care. Moss roses do not require deadheading, as they are known to self-clean, and drop faded blooms freely. The plants will, however, benefit from shearing mid-way through the summer season. At this time, each plant can be pruned back aggressively with your pair of scissors, to refresh foliage and encourage the production of flowers into fall.

Repotting

Portulaca plants that have outgrown their containers can be repotted into larger ones. Before beginning the process, water each plant well to reduce stress at the transplant. Each new container should be approximately twice the depth and twice the width of the plant’s root ball, and filled with a high-quality potting mix. Adequate drainage is also paramount. Make certain that containers have at least two or three holes in the bottom of each.

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