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Barleria repens (Coral Creeper) - Barleria repens is an evergreen plant with small rounded soft glossy leaves and pink-red flowers. It typically grows as a small rounded to spreading shrub to 2 feet tall by 3 feet wide or more but if given some support it can climb up to 6 feet tall. The stems of this plant can root along the ground, allowing it to cover a large area. The tubular pinkish-red flowers are 2 inches long and flare out to over 1 inch wide; these flowers are tubular, fairly large and appear primarily from late summer through fall with a scattering of bloom throughout the year.
This plant grows best in cool coastal sun or partial shade. In dense shade it becomes lanky and does not flower well and seems to do its best in a well-drained soil with regular irrigation. It is cold hardy ardy to 28° F. Prune hard after flowering in winter to keep tidy. This is a tough, fast growing plant that adapts well to varying conditions. It makes a great container plant or large-scale groundcover and is particularly suited for spilling over a wall, so its cascading habit can best be appreciated.
Barleria repens comes from forested area of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa northwards to tropical Africa. It has violet and white forms as well. The genus was named by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753 to honor Jacques Barrelier (1606-1673), a French physician, botanist, plant collector, author and Dominican monk who is often cited as the Rev. James Barrelier. The specific epithet given this plant is the Latin word meaning "creeping". We initially received this plant as Barleria rosea from the Huntington Botanic Garden and have grown and sold it from 2005 until 2023.
This information about Barleria repens displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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