Are coleus still annuals when grown entirely indoors?

[Shule]

If I make houseplants out of coleus, will they automatically die after a year, even without freezing? Are they tender perennials?

[Shule]

Ahah! I found these sites which say they're tender perennials:
* https://www.gardendesign.com/plants/coleus.html
* https://pss.uvm.edu/ppp/articles/tender ... too%20cold.

So, has anyone kept one alive for a long time?

[MissS]

I had one that I brought in every year for 3 years. I honestly think that it is far easier to take cuttings and keep them over the winter than to bring a plant in. Cuttings are so very easy to start that I no longer keep a plant going.

[Shule]

@MissS
Do you keep the plants/cuttings in the house during the growing season?

[MissS]

@Shule yes I do and they grow so fast, you can take cuttings of your cutting and have a bunch of them by the next growing season.

[bower]

I have never grown them outdoors, but many (many many!) years ago when I lived in an apartment and didn't have a garden, I had a coleus houseplant and I had it for years, just growing on a windowsill. It was not too demanding in a small pot, but very friendly.

[Shule]

@Bower
Awesome! Was it a north, south, east, or west, etc. window?

[bower]

@Shule For a couple of years it was a basement apartment, so it wasn't getting much sun at all, and iirc may have been in more than one place over time, but probably got a few hours of direct sunlight in any of those windows during the day. I would venture to say it wasn't too fussy - we don't get a lot of sunshine here.