Peperomia Rana Verde Care - Growing Rippled Chinese Money Plant

Last Updated on March 19, 2022 by Admin

The Peperomia Rana Verde goes by many names. These include Rippled Chinese Money Plant because of its resemblance to that plant and its rippled foliage texture.

It is also called the radiator plant and baby rubber plant to name a few more.

Its botanical name is Peperomia albovittata ‘Rana Verde’.

The plant is actually a hybrid that was produced by crossing two Peperomia albovittata cultivars.

Its most stunning features are its rounded heart-shaped leaves with textured surfaces. The ripples give it amazing character that’s very distinctive.

It is fairly small rarely getting to a foot tall. Often it will grow to around 6 to 8 inches high.

This makes it perfect for home display and décor especially on tabletops and shelves.

Additionally, it is very easy to care for and low maintenance.

What more can you ask for?

Peperomia Rana Verde Plant Care

Light Requirements

Peperomia Rana Verde thrive in medium to bright, indirect light. These can likewise tolerate low light conditions indoors but you do need to see how little light they can take.

After a certain level, their leaves will lose their vibrancy and the plant will become leggy if there’s too little light.

It is important to keep them away from direct sunlight. At most, it can take about 2 or so hours of morning sun. But, only because the morning sun is gentler.

Avoid the harsh afternoon sun.

This makes the east facing window the best spot. You can also go with a south or west facing window provided that you filter the sunlight or keep the plant a few feet away from the window.

Outdoors, there’s more light because there are no walls or ceilings to block off light. Thus, partial shade is better for the plant.

Temperature

In addition to being able to adapt well to indoor lighting, your Peperomia Rana Verde is also well suited for household climates.

Ideally, you want to keep temperature between 65 and 75 degrees for it to thrive. Fortunately, this also happens to be the sweet spot for us humans.

The thing you do want to be careful with it night time temperatures. Depending on where you live, this can drop between 10 and 15 degrees Fahrenheit from that in the daytime.

As such, you want to be aware of these drops because they can take temperature below the plant’s comfort zone.

While the 65 to 75 degree Fahrenheit is best for optimal growth, you should be aware that it will do well within 50 and 95 degrees. The difference is, the farther off you go (up or down) from the sweet spot, the less optimum its growth will be.

This means, the more noticeable its growth slowdown, lack of color or vibrancy will be.

However, as long as you stay within the range, the plant will stay healthy.

What you want to avoid is going below 50 degrees. Peperomia are tropical plants. They cannot tolerate the cold. Thus, freezing temperatures and frost will kill it.

As such, if you live below USDA Hardiness Zone 9, it is a good idea to bring the plant indoors if you take it outside to soak in the sun during summertime.

Humidity

Peperomia Rana Verde thrives in humid conditions. That’s because it is native to tropical rainforests.

As such, you want to mimic the humidity if possible to produce optimum growth.

Ideal humidity levels for the plant is at least 60%. And, it will be happy all the way up to 90% or a bit higher as well.

However, that’s not something you and your family will enjoy. In fact, it will make you hate living in your house.

The good news is, the plant does well in average household humidity which is between 40% and 50%. That said, you’ll see lovelier color, better growth and vibrancy at higher humidity.

The one thing to avoid is dry air. This can happen if you live in the desert or during very hot summers and cold winters.

Thus, in very hot, dry conditions, misting helps a lot. But, you don’t want to mist during the winter as it increases the risk of leaf diseases due to the moisture.

The best way to make sure you know what the humidity is in your home or any room in your home is to use a digital hygrometer. This portable device lets you instantly know what the humidity is in any part of your home.

With it you can make the necessary adjustments if needed.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Plant Connection SF (@plantconnectionsf)

How Often to Water Peperomia Rana Verde

Your Peperomia Rana Verde will need watering every 1 to 2 weeks. Exactly how long will depend a lot on where you live, how much sunlight it receives and what time of year it is.

The more sun it gets, the faster moisture evaporates. So, the soil dries faster.

Similarly, living in the lower part of the country where weather is generally warmer means more watering is as well.

And, you’ll need to water more in the summer and cut back significantly in winter.

The most important thing to keep in mind with watering your Peperomia Rana Verde is avoid overwatering. Too much or watering too often are harmful for the plant.

And, if done consistently, it can kill the plant eventually.

Instead, allow the soil to dry out completely before watering again. it is much better to side on lack of water than too much water. That’s because the plant can quickly bounce back with the former (usually 24 to 48 hours after you water it again).

But, the same is not the case with overwatering.

One reason for this is the plant has succulent-like leaves. if you look closely, they are thick. And, they use their foliage to store water.

This allows them to tolerate longer periods of dryness. But, also makes them susceptible to too much water.

Soil for Peperomia Rana Verde

Due to its susceptibility to overwatering, soil plays an important role not only to supply nutrients to the plant but also help prevent overwatering.

The right kind of soil will help you Peperomia Rana Verde avoid too much water. Thus, it is best to use well-draining soil.

This will allow excess moisture to drain out quickly. In doing so, preventing the possibility of your plant’s roots sitting in water, which will lead to root rot.

An easy way to achieve this kind of soil is to use:

2 parts peat
1 part perlite or sand

If you already have potting mix at home, you can add perlite or sand to regular houseplant potting mix to achieve well-draining soil that’s well suited for the plant.

Fertilizer

In the spring and summer, give you Peperomia Rana Verde a dose of liquid houseplant fertilizer once a month. Make sure to dilute it to half strength.

You don’t need to feed it during the fall and winter as is isn’t actively growing quickly during these times of the year.

Another option to liquid fertilizer is slow release formulation. These come in pellets which means you need to distribute them by hand.

The benefit of slow release fertilizer is they feed the plant over a longer period of time. Thus, it reduces the risk of overfertilizing.

As a bonus, you only need to feed it 3 times a year too.

Pruning

Peperomia Rana Verde is a small plant. it will grow to between 4 to 8 inches tall depending on the care and how much you trim it.

Either way, its size makes it a great countertop or tabletop container plant.

This also means that it does not need a lot of pruning. In many cases, you don’t need to prune it either.

The only reasons to prune is if it is getting too big for the space you put it in or the leaves are not forming the shape you want them to.

Besides that, you’ll only need to trim leggy stems and remove any discolored or damaged leaves.

However, it is important to note that the wrinkly nature of its foliage means dirt easily gets into the crevices.

This means that cleaning to remove dust and dirt is important.

Doing so allows the plant to absorb more light from the sun for photosynthesis. It allows for better air circulation.

Peperomia Rana Verde Propagation

Peperomia Rana Verde can be propagated through stem cuttings or leaf cuttings. These are the two easiest ways to grow more of this beautiful plant at home.

The best thing about it is that both are very easy to do.

For leaf cuttings,

Pick one or more leaves that are healthy.
Take them off at the junction between the stem and the end of the petiole.
Lightly coat the leaves with rooting hormone powder.
Next prepare a container and fill it with well-draining soil. Here, a wider, shallower container woks better especially if you want to plant a few leaves.
Place the leaves on the soil with the petiole into the soil.
Water the soil to keep it moist.
Cover the container with a plastic bag.

With stem cuttings,

Choose a healthy stem with at least 2 or 3 leaves on it.
Take a cutting that’s between 2 to 4 inches long.
Next you want to prepare a small pot and fill it with fresh well-draining potting sol like that mentioned above in the Soil Section.
Once ready, dip the end of the stem cutting rooting hormone to speed up the growth roots.
Then plant the stem cutting with cut end into the soil.
Water the soil and keep it moist.
And, cover the plant with a plastic bag to increase humidity.
Leave the plant in a warm spot with bright indirect light.
After about 3 to 4 weeks, it will grow roots.

How to Repot Peperomia Rana Verde

Only repot your Peperomia Rana Verde when needed. This means when you see the roots peeking out of the drainage holes at the bottom of the container.

Outside of that there’s no need to repot.

It will take years before you need to do so. This is because the plant is compact. Plus, is has a small root system as well.

When you do repot, only go up 1 inch in size (pot diameter). You don’t want to go any more than that because it is susceptible to overwatering.

And, that becomes a serious risk when you have a large container and small root system since saturating the soil will leave the plant in lots of water relative to the size of its roots.

A good way to avoid this is to use a shallow pot which reduces the volume of the soil.

Toxicity

The Peperomia Rana Verde is not toxic. Thus, it is safe to keep around kids and pets.

That said, it is not edible nor is any part of the plant supposed to be chewed or ingested.

Pests and Diseases

The plant is not susceptible to pests and diseases. This along with the low water requirements, infrequent pruning and repotting make it very easy to care for (not to mention low maintenance).

However, always be on the lookout for pests.

This is the only way to spot them early and treat them as quickly as possible. Pests are a headache. And, they become a huge problem if they’re allowed to grow into an infestation.

The most common pests your peperomia will encounter include spider mites, fungus gnats and mealybugs.

On the other hand, water is its nemesis. More specifically overwatering. This is the root cause of most diseases including leaf spot, fungal problems and root rot.

By controlling moisture, you can prevent all the problems.

Peperomia Rana Verde Care – Growing Rippled Chinese Money Plant