10 Plants With Red Stems and Green Leaves (With Photos)

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Plants with red stems and green leaves are common in many plants characterized by the presence of conducting tissues known as vascular plants, even though their green may be green. In some plants, the red pigment is only found slender parts between two nodes or points. 

The red shade can either be seen or the whole branch or partially. Some plants have genetically red-colored stems, while others may change the color of their stems due to abiotic factors like drought, low temperature, and ultraviolet radiation.

Anthocyanins are water-soluble vascular pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. The pigment that carries out the red coloration in most herbaceous is Anthocyanins. Some plants with red stems are sometimes edible; some are dangerous to humans, while others are not. 

Some of the most beautiful plants that has red stems and green leaves include castor beans, Himalayan balsam, Pokeweed, lady’s mantle, elephant bush, pigweed, mountain peppers, etc.

Let’s quickly learn more about these plants!

Common Plants with Red Stems and Green Leaves 

The common plants with red stems and green leaves include; 

1. Castor bean 

The castor bean is a fast-growing sizeable perennial shrub flower; it belongs to the spurge family Euphorbiaceous. 

This plant is used commercially in pharmaceutical and industrial use for its oil, and you can also use it for landscaping. The plants are cultivated chiefly in countries like China, Brazil, and India and are the only plant in its genus.

The oil-rich seed contains poison ricin which is a very deadly toxic substance. The castor seed is the castor bean; the castor seed is used in making castor oil which has a lot of uses in the modern day. 

The castor bean is a fast-growing suffering shrub that can reach the size of a small tree but is not cold-hardy. It has glossy leaves that can grow up to 15-45cm long, long-stalked, alternate, and palmate with five to twelve (5-12) deep lobes with coarsely toothed segments.

Some of these plant varieties start with dark reddish-purple or bronze when young; as they mature, they grow greenish with a tinge of red, and the stems also have uneven pigmentations.

See Also: Plants with White Flowers

2. Pokeweed 

The Pokeweed (Phytolacca Americana)  is a hardy perennial herb found commonly growing in the southern region of the united state. 

Phytolacca Americana, also known as American Pokeweed, belongs to Phytaloccaceae, a genus of perennial plants native to north America, south America, and east Asia, and has a pretty magenta stem. 

The poke wood grows 4 to 10 ft; it has simple green leaves, red or purple stems, and a white tap root.

This plant has a pretty magenta branch with purple berries and can grow up to 4 to 10 feet; it has simple green leaves to red or purplish stems and a large white taproot. This plant is native to Eastern North America, the Midwest, and the southern parts. 

The pokeweed plant is poisonous to humans and animals, and the leaves and shoots are edible when you cook it properly. You can use this plant as an ornamental plant in many horticulture, and it provokes interest in varieties of its natural products. 

3. Himalayan balsam

The Himalayan Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) is a large annual plant native to the Himalayas. It is present across many parts of the Northern Hemisphere and is considered invasive in most areas.

This plant is herbaceous, terrestrial, and annul, which makes it survive in several areas, including wetlands, forests, gardens, etc.

The plants compete heavily with a lot of species and grow between 3 to 6 feet tall with red and purple stems that are hollow and smooth; on each branch, there are 5-10 flowers and five petals per flower, purple, pink, or white; when ripe, the fruit capsules explode when touched.

The practical means of controlling this plant is by cutting and uprooting the plants.

4. Wineberry (Rubus phoenicolasius)

 Wine Berry is a species of raspberry in the Rose family with Asian roots; this plant is native to Korea, China, and Japan but was introduced to Europe and North America as an Ornamental Plant.

Wineberries have silvery under leaves just like the raspberry, a fruit core that remains on the body when the fruit is picked and thorns. 

The only difference between the raspberry and wineberry is that wineberry has fine red hairs that grow densely along its stems and flowers, which gives it that reddish hue. Wineberry has vitamin c, fiber and. 

5. Common Purslane

Several minerals common Purslane is an annual succulent plant belonging to the family Portulacaceous. 

The common Purslane has a smooth reddish, primarily prostrate stem and leaves, which may be alternate or opposite. The flowers are usually yellow, have five regular parts, and can grow up to 6mm wide; the flowers it produces depend on the rainfall.

They are used mainly for culinary purposes. It reaches 40cm in height, and some human cultures have eaten this plant as a nutritious herb throughout history. 

6. Elephant Bush (Portulaca area)

The Elephant Bush is a small-leaved plant you can easily find in South Africa. These plants usually have reddish stems and green leaves, which are simple to grow and care for and make easy houseplants for a Sunny location.

The elephant bush is a soft-wooded, semi-evergreen upright shrub or small tree, usually 2.5-4.5m tall; it is hardier, faster-growing, more loosely branched, and has more limber tapering branches.

It is rare in moist climates and favors dryer rocky outcrops and slopes. The plant is usually used for outdoor landscaping in frost-free regions. 

7. Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla Vulgaris)

The Lady’s Mantle is a genus of the herbaceous perennial plant, and the plant is used as an herbal tea to treat gynecological disorders. 

There are around 700 species of this plant, most native to the cool temperate and subarctic regions of Europe and Asia. 

Most species of the Lady’s Mantle are either perennials or clump-forming from woody rhizomes. The lady’s mantle has reddish stems, typically fan-shaped, with small teeth at the tips; the leaves are covered with soft hair and show a high degree of water resistance.

8. Red Stem Thalia

The Red Stem Thalia has a spike of violet flag-like flowers at the end of each of the stems in midsummer that emerges from distinctive deep purple flower buds.

It has bluish-green leaves with unique chartreuse veins throughout the year. It has an attractive red branch and, in the summer months, produces lavender flowers high above the foliage during the summer month.

The red stems of this plant are either streaked or solid; this stem contrast nicely with its leaves. 

9. Pigweed (Amaranth)

The pigweed usually grows as annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as Amaranth; some are cultivated as vegetables and ornamental plants, while others are common summer weeds and are known as pigweed.

The Amaranth or pigweed is an herbaceous plant or shrub that is either perennial or annual across the genus. It is tall with a cylindrical, succulent, and fibrous stem that is hollow with grooves and bracteoles when matured.

They vary in flower, leaf, and stem colors with a range of striking pigments ranging from a spectrum of maroon color to crimson and grow from 1 to 2.5m.

This fantastic plant’s leaves are oval, either opposite or alternate across species, although most leaves are whole and straightforward with entire margins.

10. Mountain Pepper (Tasmania lanceolate)

The Mountain Pepper is a shrub that is native to South-eastern Australia’s woodlands and cool temperate rainforest. The leaves are aromatic and usually grow up to 4-12 cm long, and the width is 0.7-2.0cm wide with distinctly pale under surfaces. The shrub varies from 2-10m high.

 The stems are red with small cream or white flowers appearing in summer, followed by black, globose, etc. you can separate the plants into female and male.

The leaves and berries of the plant can be used as spices when you dry them. It is used as a substitute for winter’s bark, a stomachic, and it is also used in the treatment of scurvy.

Conclusion

We all know that it would be scarce to come across plants with red stems and green leaves, but when we do, we are amazed by them.

Most of these plants would be suitable for indoor plants as they would be able to add that natural building to your interior spaces.

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