Persian shield
Strobilanthes dyerianus
Also called Strobilanthes and Royal purple plant
Houseplant · Patterned foliageThe metallic sheen is only on YOUNG leaves — an old plant goes dull green and no amount of light brings it back. Take cuttings each spring and grow the new ones on; treat it as replaceable rather than permanent.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Medium
- Water
- Every 4 daysKeep it moist — water at the first hint of dryness — don't wait for a dry pot.
- Light
- Bright indirect, with an hour or two of direct sun
- Feed
- Every 21 days
- Humidity
- High
- Hardiness
- Indoors, or out in high summer RHS H1B, to 10°C
- Size
- 0.9 m tall · 0.6 m across
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Origin
- Myanmar
Is it safe for pets and people?
No animal-poison authority lists this plant either way.
Nobody has checked this one against a source for us yet, so treat it as unknown rather than safe.
The ASPCA catalogue names neither this species nor its genus, in either the toxic or the non-toxic section, and both were checked. That is an absence and not a clean bill.
Checked against ASPCA on 2026-09-22. Where a source says nothing, we say nothing.
A guide, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet or a person has eaten a plant and you are worried, call your vet or doctor now — don’t wait for signs to appear. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
First signs of trouble
- The old leaves go flat green and metallic only on the newest pair at the tip. Nothing is wrong — the iridescence is a property of young leaves, and the answer is cuttings rather than care.Losing the sheen · disorder
- Brown paper edges on the largest lower leaves within days of a radiator coming on. It wants humid air and says so faster than most.Crisping edges · disorder