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Species library › Pilea › Pilea elegans
Terrarium Partly documented

Pilea elegans

A small, shade-loving Pilea endemic to the temperate Valdivian rainforest of south-central Chile. Unlike tropical terrarium Pileas, it comes from a cool, wet-winter climate with occasional light frost. It wants cool, very shady, constantly moist conditions and suffers in warm rooms.

At home, aim for
Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Humid airBand in Plantistry
Light Deep shadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

It is a forest-floor herb of cool, humid gullies.

GBIF records with elevations give about 45–600 m, in lowland and foothill Valdivian forest.

Chile

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

Grow Pilea elegans? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.