I was shopping today, when I came across a plant I thought would make a nice small gift (image included).
Unfortunately, besides being listed as a Danish plant on the label, what exactly is it?
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A plant that fruits tasty Danish pastries? Ah, drat, no.... ;^) – Ecnerwal Oct 29 '23 at 13:23
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You have a small Hypoestes phyllostachya, also known as polka dot plant.
This native of Madagascar comes in different cultivars with green leaves dotted with a contrasting color. Yours is pink, there are also red and white cultivars.
Under good conditions (around 20° C, bright, but not sunny spot, frequent watering without drenching the pot), the plant can grow up to 30-50cm.
As they tend to get a bit scraggly when older and can lose their distinctive coloring, a bit of pruning is occasionally needed. Some sources recommend replacing them with younger (i.e. more vibrant) plants, which should be easy to do as cuttings readily root in soil or water.
