• Botanical name: Coleus Forskohlii -Labiatate which is a member of the mint family.
• Members of the genus Coleus have square stems, branched, the nodes are often hairy. The entire plant is aromatic (whether fresh or dried).
• The most common colour combination that is found in coleus are burgundy, chartreuse, red and green.
• Conical, fusiform, straight and strongly aromatic. Leaves Usually pubescent, narrowed into petioles.
• Flowers Very showy bluish to pale lavender coloured flowers. Racemes are perfect, the calyx is fine toothed and deflexed in the front.
• The leaves and tubers have quite different odours, the latter being reminiscent of but quite different from ginger.
• The plants grows to a height of 60 to 90 cms. The stems are thin and light green in colour. The leaves contains no smell.
• The root tubers are mostly used in medicinal. The tubers are 30 Cms in length. The roots are yellow in colour.
• The root material may be tuberous, semi-tuberous or fibrous depending upon the growth conditions.
• The most common colour combination that is found in coleus are burgundy, chartreuse, red and green.
• A variety like Rustic Orange with deep-burnt orange leaves and a saw-toothed edge, can be a bit more difficult to blend with more traditional coleus colours.
• The species grows on sun-exposed hill slopes and plateaus in arid and semi-arid climatic zones.
• The species is herbaceous with annual stems and perennial rootstock. Growth habit is strikingly variable being erect, procumbent or decumbent.
• Shoot height varies from 15.0 to 120 cm. Lamina length varies from 1.5 to 15.5 cm2. Inflorescence length ranges from 3 to 40 cm
• Approximately 1-500 g of root material can be obtained from a single plant. The forskolin content of the roots varies from 0.07%-0.58% of dry matter