Vinca Plant Care

Home > Container Gardening

This article covers how to care for a Vinca plant, how to grow and propagate, what Soil to use, Repotting, Pruning and how much Water, Sunlight and Fertilizer is needed. You will know the best and most recommended ways to care for your Vinca plant.

Vinca General Info

Native: Europe, northwest Africa, southwest Asia
Genus: Vinca
Scientific Name: Vinca rosea
Common Names: Periwinkle, Running Myrtle, Sadabahar, Rosea
👪Family: Apocynaceae
🌼Flowers: fragrant pink, violet, blue, purple, or lavender flowers with 5 petals each.
🍃Leaf Colors: Green
🌡️Temperature: 68˚F (±2˚F) to 82˚F (20 C to 27 C)
🌼Growing season: Summer
💧Watering: Do not overwater. Only when soil is dry.
☀️Light: Bright direct light
🐛Pests: aphids, thrips, spider mites, and white flies
☠️Toxicity: Toxic to Dogs, Cats & Horses
☠️Allergen: pollen is airborne and allergenic, IgE-mediated respiratory allergy
🧴Use: Ornamental Houseplants, medicinal use
Propagation🌱: by Seeds and cuttings.
Height📏: 8 to 27.5 inch
Soil: Well draining, slightly acidic soil.

How to water💧

Do not over water: Only water when the soil goes completely dry.

When watering your Vinca, remember the 2 D’s

Drench: Water until the pot starts to drain the water, and the soil is completely drenched.
Drain: Water should be completely drained

The best way to know when to water is to do the classic finger test where you stick your finger and see if 1-2 inches of the topsoil has dried out completely before giving it more water. If it's still moist, don't water it.

Just picking up the pot is also an easy way to know if it needs to be watered. It feels pretty lightweight and doesn’t seem to have moisture in there, you can plan to water.

Pro Tip: Better to be on the side of under-watering than over-watering. Most of the plants can recover from severe under-watering but die if over-watered.

Sunlight Requirements ☀️

Lots of indirect bright sunlight. In the harsh sun of summers, keep them under a shade.

Note: Make sure you don’t keep the plant very close to the glass window, as it can intensify sun rays and burn the leaves. Too much direct sunlight will burn the leaves

Soil

Garden soil (30%) for nutrients.
Sand (30%) for good drainage of water. Use river sand or construction sand. Don’t use beach or sea sand because it is high in sodium chloride (salt).
Compost (30%)
Neem Cake powder (10%) for preventing fungal growth.

Pot should be well drained with multiple drainage holes. Water should not be withheld in the pot at all. Also, place some rocks in the pot first so they drain all the water well, without losing soil being drained from the holes.

Fertilizer

Use an organic fertilizer once a month. Do not over fertilize as they don’t require a lot of fertilization.

Temperature and Humidity 🌡️

Ideal temperature is between 68˚F (±2˚F) to 82˚F (20 C to 27 C).
Vinca’s prefer moderate moisture for the best growth.

Plant Care Problems

📸 Screenshot this Vinca troubleshooting table!

Problem

Reason

Solution

Yellow Leaves

Overwatering

Cold Weather

Move in a covered area if the weather is cold.

Leaves drooping

Underwatering

Water the plant from below the pot.

How to revive an overwatered Periwinkle plant 🆘

If you have overwatered your Vinca, and the plant is still in the wet soil,

Remove the plant from the pot
Remove any rotted parts of the Plant from the roots
Repot into new dry soil

Pests 🐛and Diseases🦠

Aphids, thrips, spider mites, and white flies. You can easily get rid of these pests and diseases.

How to Propagate🌱

Here you will learn how to transplant Vinca from its Stem cuttings and using seeds. Propagation of Vinca is very easy.

There are 2 ways to propagate Vinca plants:

Propagation by Seeds

Cut a seed pod and take the seeds out of it.
Place the seeds on the soil.
Add a ¼ inch fine layer of potting mix. Do not sow the seeds too deep.
Press it down lightly, firm the potting mix with the palm of your hand to crate a smooth, even surface.
Mist the compose with a spray bottle to settle it. Spray the potting mix until it feels wet at a depth of 1 inch.
Place the container in a partial shade and keep the potting mix moist all the time while the vinca seeds germinate.
Seeds will germinate in 2-3 days

Propagation by Cutting

Cut a stem of the Vinca plant from the middle. Cut a stem just below a leaf node.
Cut 10-15 such cuttings.
Pot the cutting into the soil or water.

How fast does Vinca grow

If you are propagating Vinca using seeds, the seeds will germinate in 10-15 days. If you are propagating Vinca from cuttings in the water or soil, the roots start to form within 1-2 weeks.

Vinca can grow upto 8-27 inches (20-70cm) above the ground.

To promote growth in Vinca, you can use the pinching & cutting back technique which is basically to pinch and cut the top parts of the stem which in turn leads to a growth of 2 stems from that cut region.

Vinca and Cats / Dogs☠️

Vinca is toxic to Cats, Dogs and Horses. Clinical Signs include Vomiting, diarrhea, low blood pressure, depression, tremors, seizures, coma, death.

Flowering🌼

Summer is the time when Vinca flowers bloom. However, you will find flowers during the winter season too. That is why Vinca is considered an evergreen plant. Flowers are fragrant with 5 petals each.