Lysimachia nummularia (Creeping Jenny) care

Light

The Goldilocks zone. Not the south-facing windowsill (too hot, too direct), not the back of the room (too dim, growth stalls). Full sun to partial shade. Sun gives the heaviest flowering and tighter growth; in hot, dry climates light afternoon shade prevents scorch and conserves moisture. If you can't decide, a free phone lux-meter app aimed at the leaf at noon should read between 800 and 1,500 lux.

Watering

Watering lysimachia nummularia: keep consistently moist; water whenever the surface begins to dry. The number that matters isn't the day of the week — it's how dry the top 2-3 cm of the pot feels. A finger in the soil tells you more than a watering app. After every watering, tip the saucer. Loves damp to wet soil and tolerates a pond margin in shallow water. In borders or pots, never let it dry out fully, or leaves crisp at the edges. It will not thrive in droughty ground.

Soil and pot

Lysimachia nummularia grows best in moist, fertile, humus-rich loam. Adaptable to most soils provided they stay damp; richest growth is in heavy, moisture-retentive loam. Tolerates clay and boggy ground. Neutral to slightly acid or alkaline pH all suit it. A pot with a working drainage hole is non-negotiable for this species — even free-draining mix will turn soggy in a closed planter. If you love the look of a decorative pot without a hole, use it as a cachepot around an inner nursery pot you can lift out to water.

Humidity and temperature

Lysimachia nummularia sits happiest at around 50-90% humidity and 5-26°C (41-79°F). A hardy outdoor groundcover unbothered by humidity swings. Damp soil matters far more than air moisture; it relishes the humid microclimate of waterside plantings. If you keep the room above 5 year-round and avoid placing the plant near a cold draught, a hot radiator, or an air-conditioning vent, you have already handled the two biggest indoor stressors.

Fertilising

Feed lysimachia nummularia sparingly. Needs little feeding in decent soil and over-feeding only accelerates its already rampant spread. A light topdressing of compost in spring is plenty. In containers, a dilute balanced liquid feed monthly through summer keeps trailing growth lush. Skip fertiliser entirely on a stressed, recently-repotted, or actively wilting plant — fertiliser salts make damage worse, not better. Wait for a round of healthy new growth before resuming a feeding rhythm.

Common problems

Below are the issues we see most often on lysimachia nummularia in the Growli community. Each is annotated with the most common cause so you know where to start.

• Invasive spread — Roots wherever stems touch moist soil and can swamp smaller neighbours or escape into lawns and waterways. It is listed as invasive in parts of North America; site it where it can be contained or grow it in pots.
• Leaf scorch in dry sun — In full sun with dry roots the foliage browns and thins. Keep the soil reliably moist or move it to part shade in hot regions.
• Bare, leggy centres — Old mats can go thin and woody in the middle. Shear or pull out tired growth to encourage fresh rooting runners.
• Rust and leaf spot — Crowded, damp foliage occasionally develops rust or fungal leaf spots. Thin congested growth and clear fallen debris to improve airflow.

Propagation

Trivially easy: lift and replant rooted runners at any time in the growing season, or take 5-8 cm stem cuttings and root them in damp soil within a week or two. Division of clumps in spring or autumn also works. Propagation is the cheapest, most satisfying way to expand a collection — and it doubles as insurance against losing a mature plant to an accident. Take a backup cutting once the parent is established and healthy.

Toxicity to pets

Lysimachia nummularia is mildly toxic to pets. Lysimachia nummularia is not individually listed on the ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plant lists; some garden sources call it pet-safe but this is not ASPCA-confirmed, so treat it as uncertain, keep pets from grazing it, and verify with a vet if ingestion occurs. If you keep cats, dogs, or curious children in the house, weigh placement carefully — a high shelf or a hanging planter is enough for casual safety. For severe ingestion incidents, call your local vet and the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (in the US, 888-426-4435).

Pet-safety status is sourced from the ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plant List, which catalogues the most-asked-about plants for cats, dogs, and horses.

Lysimachia nummularia deep-dive guides

Every aspect of lysimachia nummularia care, each with its own calibrated guide:

• Lysimachia nummularia watering schedule
• Lysimachia nummularia light requirements
• Best soil mix for lysimachia nummularia
• Lysimachia nummularia fertilizing guide
• When to repot lysimachia nummularia
• How to propagate lysimachia nummularia
• Lysimachia nummularia growth rate & size
• Lysimachia nummularia cold hardiness
• Lysimachia nummularia temperature & humidity
• Is lysimachia nummularia toxic to cats & dogs?
• Is lysimachia nummularia toxic to cats?
• Is lysimachia nummularia toxic to dogs?
• Getting lysimachia nummularia to bloom

Featured in these plant shortlists

Lysimachia nummularia qualifies for 10 curated Growli shortlists — each one filtered objectively from our structured plant-care library, so the selection is consistent and checkable:

• Best low-light houseplants — Houseplants that need no direct sun and cope with a north-facing room or a spot well back from a window.
• Best plants for a north-facing window — Houseplants for a north-facing window: bright, even, indirect light and no scorching direct sun. Each pick verified against its documented light needs.
• Best drought-tolerant houseplants — Houseplants that prefer to dry out — forgiving of forgotten watering and ideal for travel or busy weeks.
• Best trailing & climbing houseplants — Vining and trailing houseplants for shelves, hanging pots, and moss poles — selected by growth habit.
• Best houseplants for beginners — Forgiving of irregular light and watering — the houseplants least likely to die in a new plant parent’s first season.
• Best humidity-loving houseplants — Houseplants that thrive in a bathroom, kitchen, or by a humidifier — selected by documented humidity preference.
• Best bathroom plants — Humidity-loving houseplants that also cope with lower light — suited to the steamy, often-dim conditions of a typical bathroom.
• Best flowering houseplants — Indoor plants grown for their blooms — selected from the flowering species in Growli’s plant-care library.
• Best houseplants for a cool room — Houseplants that tolerate cool conditions down to about 10°C — for an unheated spare room, hallway, porch or a home kept cool.
• Best fast-growing houseplants — Houseplants documented as fast or vigorous growers — quick to fill a pot, cover a pole or trail down a shelf.
• Browse all 29 plant shortlists — pet-safe, low-light, drought-tolerant and more

Related guides

Lysimachia nummularia is also known as Creeping Jenny, Moneywort, and Herb Twopence.

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