Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Baby Tears (Pilea) (Pilea depressa)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Baby Tears, Baby's Tears Pilea, Depressa, Miniature Creeping Charlie, Jacob's Coat (regional).

More about baby tears (pilea)

About Baby Tears (Pilea)

Pilea depressa · also called Baby Tears, Baby's Tears Pilea · houseplant

Pilea depressa, or Baby Tears, is a small trailing Urticaceae houseplant with masses of tiny round green leaves on creeping stems, ideal for terrariums and hanging pots. It wants bright indirect light, steadily moist soil, and high humidity. The ASPCA lists no Pilea as toxic, so it is considered pet-safe.

Cold limit: USDA 10-12 (grown as a houseplant outside these zones) (15-24°C)

What baby tears (pilea)'s hardiness rating actually means

Baby Tears (Pilea) 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 H1c means: Warm-temperate — can summer outdoors but must come in well before the first frost. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10-12 (grown as a houseplant outside these zones) — 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 5 °C (and never frost). Baby Tears (Pilea) has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for baby tears (pilea) as it gets too cold:

Below about about 5 °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 baby tears (pilea) go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 5 °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 baby tears (pilea) can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1c figure above.

Baby Tears (Pilea) hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is baby tears (pilea) cold hardy?

Baby Tears (Pilea) 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. Baby Tears (Pilea) can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10-12 (grown as a houseplant outside these zones)); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature baby tears (pilea) can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 5 °C (and never frost). Baby Tears (Pilea) has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

What hardiness zone is baby tears (pilea)?

Baby Tears (Pilea) is rated USDA 10-12 (grown as a houseplant outside these zones) and RHS H1c — Warm-temperate — can summer outdoors but must come in well before the first frost.

Can baby tears (pilea) survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 5 °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 baby tears (pilea) below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 5 °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.