Shining Temple Bells (Brilliant Temple Bells) care

Light

The Goldilocks zone. Not the south-facing windowsill (too hot, too direct), not the back of the room (too dim, growth stalls). Best in bright, filtered light from an east or west-facing window; a few metres from a sunny south window is also suitable. Some filtered morning sun enhances the attractive maroon-red pigmentation of the hairy foliage without scorching. 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 shining temple bells: every 3–4 days during active growth; none during winter dormancy. 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. Water when the top centimetre of mix is just dry, using tepid soft water delivered at the base. Avoid wetting the hairy leaves. Taper off as flowers fade in autumn and withhold completely through the dormant winter period.

Soil and pot

Shining Temple Bells grows best in free-draining peat-perlite mix. Use a light African violet-style compost or combine equal parts peat, perlite, and fine bark with a pinch of horticultural lime. Excellent aeration prevents rhizome rot during the long growing season. 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

Shining Temple Bells sits happiest at around 60–80% humidity and 18–25°C (growing); 10–12°C (dormancy) (64–77°F (growing); 50–54°F (dormancy)). High humidity is essential. Stand on a wet pebble tray or use a nearby humidifier. Direct misting causes spotting on the hairy leaves; always raise ambient humidity instead. If you keep the room above 18–25°C (growing); 10–12°C (dormancy) 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 shining temple bells sparingly. Feed fortnightly with a high-potassium liquid fertiliser at half strength from first new growth in spring until flowering ends in autumn. Suspend feeding entirely through winter dormancy. 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 shining temple bells in the Growli community. Each is annotated with the most common cause so you know where to start.

• Maroon leaf discolouration loss — Insufficient light causes the attractive reddish pigmentation of the hairy foliage to fade to plain green. Move to a brighter filtered-light position to restore colour.
• Rhizome rot during dormancy — Continuing to water through winter in a cold room leads to rhizome rot. Once foliage has fully died back, store rhizomes dry or barely moist at 10–12°C until spring.
• Fungal rot at stem base — Excess humidity combined with poor air circulation causes neck rot where the stem meets the soil. Ensure pots have drainage holes, avoid overwatering, and maintain gentle air movement.

Propagation

Divide scaly rhizomes in spring, placing sections 1–2 cm deep in fresh peat-perlite mix. Stem-tip cuttings taken in late spring root under humid cover at 22–24°C. Seeds surface-sown on moist peat with bottom heat at 25°C germinate in 2–3 weeks. 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

Shining Temple Bells is mildly toxic to pets. Smithiantha fulgida (a cultivated synonym of S. cinnabarina per Kew) is not individually listed in the ASPCA database. The Gesneriaceae family has no widely reported toxic principle, and relatives including Nematanthus spp. are confirmed ASPCA non-toxic. However, with no individual entry confirmed, keep away from pets and children as a precaution. 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.

Shining Temple Bells deep-dive guides

Every aspect of shining temple bells care, each with its own calibrated guide:

• Common shining temple bells problems & fixes
• Shining Temple Bells watering schedule
• Shining Temple Bells light requirements
• Best soil mix for shining temple bells
• Shining Temple Bells fertilizing guide
• When to repot shining temple bells
• How to propagate shining temple bells
• How to prune shining temple bells
• What's eating my shining temple bells?
• Shining Temple Bells growth rate & size
• Shining Temple Bells cold hardiness
• Shining Temple Bells temperature & humidity
• Is shining temple bells toxic to cats & dogs?
• Is shining temple bells toxic to cats?
• Is shining temple bells toxic to dogs?
• Getting shining temple bells to bloom

Featured in these plant shortlists

Shining Temple Bells qualifies for 5 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 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.
• Browse all 29 plant shortlists — pet-safe, low-light, drought-tolerant and more

Related guides

Shining Temple Bells is also commonly called Shining Temple Bells or Brilliant Temple Bells.

• Yellow Trumpet Creeper care — light, water and common problems
• Cat's Claw Creeper care — light, water and common problems
• Two-Flowered Everlasting Pea care — light, water and common problems
• All 8452 plant care guides in the Growli library