How to Repot a Coleus

Examine your coleus for signs that it needs repotting. When roots are sprouting out of the bottom of the container, or when the plant is getting larger than the container or top-heavy, it will need repotting.

Select a pot with a height and diameter that is half the height of the plant. This will give the coleus enough room to grow for another 6 months to 1 year. Make sure your pot has drainage holes.

Snip or pinch off the tips of each branch. The tips of a coleus plant grow small spikes of tiny blossoms with seeds. Like most annuals, the plant wants to drop its seeds and die. By keeping the blossom spikes from growing, the plant’s mission to reproduce is incomplete, which gives it a will to live. Snipping off these blossom spikes just before transplanting will force the plant to put more energy into its foliage and roots so it will stand up to transplant shock better.

Cover the holes on the bottom of the pot with mesh or pottery shards to promote good drainage and air circulation, and to prevent soil from falling out. Fill the pot about a quarter of the way up with an all-purpose potting soil.

Place the coleus, while still in its pot, in the center of the new container. The top of the plant's soil line should be about 1 inch below the top edge of the new container. Adjust the height of the plant by adding or subtracting soil from the new container until the top of the plant's soil line is sitting at the correct height.

Take your coleus plant. Put your hand on top of the soil, with the plant stem between your thumb and forefinger. Tip the pot and ease the root ball out of the pot. If the pot is plastic, you can squeeze it gently to help loosen the soil ball. If the pot is solid, push your finger in through the bottom drainage holes or jiggle the pot and let gravity do its work.

Put the coleus root ball in the center of the new pot. Fill in the gaps between the sides of the pot and the root ball with more soil, but don’t add soil to cover the top of the plant around the stem. Leave the original soil line exposed. Water the plant and care for it as usual.