Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant (Aeschynanthus radicans 'Mona Lisa')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant, Lipstick Plant.

More about mona lisa lipstick plant

About Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant

Aeschynanthus radicans 'Mona Lisa' · also called Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant, Lipstick Plant · houseplant

Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant is arguably the most popular lipstick plant cultivar, prized for its prolific clusters of vivid red-orange tubular flowers emerging from dark maroon calyces and its glossy, dark-green trailing foliage. Pet-safe and rewarding to grow, it performs best with bright indirect light, warm temperatures, consistent moisture, and good humidity.

Cold limit: USDA 10–12 · RHS H1b (15–27°C)

Watch for — Failure to flower: The most common complaint with Mona Lisa. Usually caused by insufficient light, over-watering, or overly warm nights. Ensure bright indirect light, allow a slight seasonal drop in temperature in autumn (15–17°C nights), and keep slightly pot-bound. A phosphorus-rich fertiliser boost in late winter also helps.

What mona lisa lipstick plant's hardiness rating actually means

Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10–12 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for mona lisa lipstick plant as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can mona lisa lipstick plant go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when mona lisa lipstick plant can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is mona lisa lipstick plant cold hardy?

Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10–12); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature mona lisa lipstick plant can survive?

What hardiness zone is mona lisa lipstick plant?

Mona Lisa Lipstick Plant is rated USDA 10–12 and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can mona lisa lipstick plant survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to mona lisa lipstick plant below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.