Peperomia caperata 'Cayenne'

Origin and background of 'Cayenne'

'Cayenne' is a cultivated form of Peperomia caperata. Peperomia caperata is native to south-eastern Brazil and grows there as a perennial in wet tropical habitat.

How to care for 'Cayenne'

• Light: Place it in bright indirect or filtered light. Stronger indirect light can help maintain compact growth, but direct sun can bleach and scar the dark leaves.
• Watering: Water when the top of the substrate has dried and the pot feels lighter. Water thoroughly and drain fully.
• Humidity: Average household humidity normally suits the plant. If the room is consistently very dry, raise the room humidity while keeping the leaves dry with some airflow around them.
• Substrate: Use an airy houseplant mix that holds some moisture, with perlite, pumice or fine bark for drainage.
• Feeding: Give a small dose of complete fertiliser while the plant is actively growing. Reduce feeding when growth slows.
• Temperature: About 18–30 °C suits 'Cayenne'. Keep it above roughly 10 °C and protected from cold draughts and sudden chilling after watering.
• Repotting: Repot when roots crowd the container or the mix becomes compacted and slow to dry. Choose a pot only slightly larger.

Problems and solutions for 'Cayenne'

• Red leaves develop bleached papery patches: Move the plant away from direct sun or hot glass. Existing scorch is permanent, so use undamaged new growth to judge the new position.
• The clump droops and the leaves begin to wrinkle: Check the substrate before deciding whether to water. A genuinely dry, light pot needs a thorough watering; a damp one should be allowed to dry further and checked for root damage if the plant stays limp.
• Lower leaves turn yellow or translucent: Roots can begin to rot if the substrate stays wet for too long. If decay is present, remove soft dark roots with clean, disinfected tools, discard rotten tissue and contaminated mix, and repot in fresh airy mix. Follow the root rot guide for confirmed rot.
• Cottony white insects appear around the bases of the leaf stalks: Isolate the plant and remove visible mealybugs from the centre of the plant and the leaf undersides. If they persist, use a product labelled for mealybugs on indoor ornamentals and repeat treatment only at the interval stated on the label. The mealybug guide can help with identification.

Peperomia caperata ‘Cayenne’ is non-toxic to people and pets

• This plant is non-toxic to people, cats and dogs.
• Chewing a large amount can still cause an upset stomach.
• If a large amount is eaten and symptoms continue, contact a veterinarian or medical professional.

When was Peperomia caperata first published, and what does it mean?

Peperomia combines Greek peperi, “pepper”, with homoios, “resembling”, and means “pepper-like”. Caperata comes from the Latin caperatus, meaning wrinkled or corrugated, and refers to the deeply folded leaf surface.

Hipólito Ruiz López and José Antonio Pavon established the genus Peperomia in 1794 in Flora Peruvianae et Chilensis Prodromus, page 8.

Truman George Yuncker first described Peperomia caperata in 1958 in Kew Bulletin, volume 12, page 421.