Pilea Glauca: Small Leaves, Big Impression

If you’re a lover of big, bold plants, perhaps it’s time to open your mind to the thought of an impressive plant of a very different scale. Open your mind and heart to Pilea glauca. With the happy name Silver Sprinkles, this red-stemmed succulent Pilea is pretty and very memorable, though most of its leaves max out at less than 1/4 of an inch. How can anything comprised of foliage this small be impressive? Well, don’t ask. Just get hold of one of these plants, and look.

Tiny-Leaf Succulent

Red-stemmed Pilea glauca is one of those succulents that can handle quite a bit of neglect and still look great. With its miniscule silvery blue leaves clustering and cascading from reddish stems that have a circumference similar to that of medium-gauge wire, it covers a plant pot nicely. Taking on a bushy form at the top of the soil, it drapes over the edge of the plant pot. Few gaps and bare spots appear when this is the houseplant in focus.

Easy Care

Pilea glauca has relatively few needs, but one is to be placed in soil that has good drainage. As is the case with other succulents, sopping wet roots will do this plant no good whatsoever. Nevertheless, soil type and alkalinity/acidity matter little to this carefree houseplant. This is an easy plant to grow, thriving under very basic care; that means no disappointments.

Pilea glauca does best in the following conditions:

• warmth
• humidity
• bright to moderate indirect light
• monthly fertilizing
• watering with a very light touch.

Where to Plant

While many houseplants show best when combined with other plants as container-mates, Pilea glauca seems to want its own plant pot so that it can have no worries about being shaded or crowded out. Set it in a small container and let its spilling leaves do their thing. Despite its small overall size and incredibly small leaf size, Pilea glauca is sure to get noticed. And if you use Pilea glauca in a terrarium where it will get lots of the humidity it likes, you can plant it so that it spreads atop the soil as a ground cover to decorate the base of the terrarium.

Celebratory Name

While it’s useful to know a plant’s botanical name (Pilea glauca), playing up the ‘Silver Sprinkles’ moniker can be fun when gifting this plant or setting it out for a special occasion. Glitter, confetti, candy sprinkles—don’t all of these connect to celebrations and happy events? ‘Silver Sprinkles’ can have the same connection. Give this plant as a gift, and you can do a lot with its name.

If you are indeed a lover of big, bold plants, keep setting your sights on Monsteras, Elephant Ears… plants that are large and impressive. The drama of those big-leaf plants is undeniable. But this little ‘Silver Sprinkles’ is likely to be of great appeal, as well, somehow catching the eye despite its small size. Opening your mind and heart to Pilea glauca might open up a world of small-scale, incredible plants… plants you’ve never even considered, but should.