Ornamental artillery plant, Pilea microphylla, aka gunpowder or pistol plant, military fern, or rockweed, is an herbaceous perennial.
It is one of about 600 types of non-stinging Pilea species in the Urticaceae, or nettle family.
This tropical species thrives outdoors year-round in Zones 11 to 12 as a short-lived evergreen perennial. It is also grown as an outdoor annual or indoor houseplant in all zones.
We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission.
In this article, we’ll discuss all you need to know to grow and care for your own artillery plant indoors.
Here’s the lineup:
Let’s get started!
Cultivation and HistoryP. microphylla is nontoxic to pets.
It has a creeping growth habit and may reach mature dimensions of six to 18 inches high and 12 to 24 inches wide.
The artillery species has plump leaves like a succulent. They are either green or variegated pink and white, one-eighth to one-half inch long, and “obovate,” or rounded and narrower at the base. The leaves are arranged in opposing pairs, like a fern frond.
In nature, the species produces tiny pinkish flowers followed by brown fruits. And while flowering is unlikely to occur indoors, it’s fun to know about it because the names “artillery,” “gunpowder,” “military,” and “pistol” come from an unusual characteristic.
There are both male and female flowers, and the males literally propel pollen into the air, as in an aerial attack.
Historically speaking, the artillery species has undergone numerous botanical reclassifications by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus and later botanists, including Parietaria microphylla (1759), Pilea muscosa (1821), P.
Read more on gardenerspath.com