Coleus ‘Wasabi’

* Common name: Coleus ‘Wasabi’

* Botanical name: Solenostemon scutellarioides ‘Wasabi’

* What it is: A warm-weather annual grown for its showy foliage that screams a neon chartreuse. Leaves are large and serrated, and the plant develops few (if any) “distracting” flowers.

* Size: 24”-28” tall with an 18-inch spread.

* Where to use: Flower pots or window boxes or in the ground in foundation beds. Part shade is ideal, but ‘Wasabi’ doesn’t wash out in full sun like some coleus and tolerates heat well. Also grows in shade, but color is more green and less vibrant.

* Care: Plant after all danger of frost in mid to late May. Check water daily in pots. In the ground, water twice weekly in the first six weeks, then weekly if the weather is dry. Work compost and timed-release flower fertilizer into soil at planting. Supplemental in-season fertilizer usually not needed in the ground, but pot-grown ones appreciate an occasional boost. Yank and compost when frost kills them.

* Great partner: Vigorous and showy enough to stand alone, but pairs nicely with any red- or burgundy-leaf coleus. In a pot, it makes an attractive bushy plant around a centerpiece of black elephant ears (i.e. ‘Black Magic’ or Royal Hawaiian ‘Black Coral’) or red fountain grass (i.e. pennisetum ‘Rubrum’ or ‘Fireworks’).