My local newspaper garden columnist featured this plant recently in an article on house plants. Wow, it's gorgeous! I would love to have one but wonder about its humidity requirements especially in the winter months. Are they a particularly difficult plant to grow? From doing a search on ATP I see there are some members that have this plant and wonder how they have done for you?
Thanks for any advice!

Pink Lantern (Medinilla magnifica) is a beautiful tropical plant for hardiness zones 10 and 11. It requires bright light (but no direct sun), warmth and high humidity so if you can replicate those conditions in your home, it should be happy. To raise humidity around the plant, sit the container on a tray of moist pebbles, keeping the pebbles moist at all times. Misting the foilage on a regular basis would also help.

These plants would do very well inside the house with normal conditions. I've collected few of them; Lalique, Magnifica, Miniata. I have to give them away when we start moving couple times into apartment due to hubby's job.

Thank you Lin and cb. A shopping trip is in order!

Hello DebbieC, I have seen that plant before at the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco. it does require high humidity conditions, they have it growing in their warmest and most humid part of their conservatory. In Florida, it is easier to achieve, but in Manitoba, and knowing what the weather is like there, see if you can provide the humidity it needs as Lin suggested.

I have also seen it in Manila..and humidity there is thru the roof..so think very well, if you can sustain provision of humidity all day long for it, it seems to be happy at about 70% to 90% humidity levels, think sticky heat levels, they way we feel like in Manitoba when we get the sporadic 30C to 33C temps in summer.

Hmm, that sort of humidity would be pretty difficult to achieve in our dry indoor winters Tarev as you know. Thanks for the input, may have to reconsider! Could be a pricey experiment to fail at. Cheers, Debbie.

Yes, that is why I have to caution you Debbie. And something I learned along the way, not to buy tropicals in the middle of winter..wait patiently for Spring...in Manitoba, hmmm..maybe very late in Spring to early Summer already.

I will always remember how sunny it is in Manitoba even in winter, but the cold temps is something else even with our heaters on.

Those I've seen (in conservatoires in Iowa and Missouri) were pretty large plants.

Maybe I should just go and check out our city Conservatory and pretend it's my garden! Probably a lot less expensive, lol.
Yes Tarev, when we pickup our Pointsettias for Christmas we have jog out to our warmed running vehicle and drive straight home! As we hardy Winnipeggers like to say "But, it's a dry cold"(inside joke).

Indeed Debbie!

Did anyone find/get any of these plants?

Debbie C
I'm not sure how old this post (I just noticed your posting date) is but I'm wondering if your nursery in Manitoba is still selling the Medinilla Magnifica. I bought one a few years ago in Ontario. It bloomed beautifully for me there. We moved to British Columbia 4.5 years ago and on the travel here the beginning of August, I had put the Medinilla under my truck tarp. Well unbeknownst to me the tarp touched the branch that had produced the flowers and completely burned it. The plant survived, but with no blooms until recently when I noticed it had lots of 'white dust' on the leaves. I was told it was a bug of sort and to use very diluted Dawn soap sprayed on it, followed by spraying the leaves liberally with water. Well it got rid of the bugs but the leave have all but dropped 3 and they don't look very good. I'm not ready to nor do I want to discard the plant being ever hopeful, but I would like to buy another but I've never seen them here. So I was wondering if they are a regular item at your nursery if they would consider shipping them in the spring. Thanks in advance for anyones help. Anita D.

The thread is 6 1/2 years old.

To address your problem... You were given bad advice. Dawn soap is a degreaser. Its great for removing oil from baby ducks. When used on plants, it removes the waxy coating (cuticle) from the leaves. The cuticle has a number of functions but the most important is keeping the leaves from losing all their moisture. Hopefully, your plant will recover. Next time, find some Insecticidal Soap.

Hello Anita,
Sorry to hear about your plant! Hopefully you are able to nurse it back to health.
I have not seen the Medinella offered regularly here but then I have not been looking for it either as I decided I couldn't offer it the conditions and it requires.
Have you tried Phoenix Perennials located in Richmond, BC? They have an extensive stock of plants both for the garden and indoors, and cater to a lot of rare and unusual plants. They do mail order and instore shopping. I'm almost positive they would have what you are looking for. Good luck!