PlantFiles: Beefsteak Plant
Perilla frutescens

This plant is extremely invasive. Earlier this summer I completely cleared a bed of it and in a matter of 3 weeks it looked as if nothing had been done. This plant is right up there with mint in places where it isn't native. True the foliage is nice but I would never recommend this plant to anyone.

Lots of interesting reading here:
[HYPERLINK@altnature.com]

This plant, in both green & red variations, is naturalized here in Culpeper, VA, & I have several plants coming up in partial to full shade uncultivated areas of my property, some of which I'm planning on potting up.

While I haven't cooked with it yet, I do find it pleasant to nibble on when I'm working outdoors, & do plan to begin using it in both Korean & Japanese dishes. The taste, to me, is a mild mint/licorice.

It is pretty, easy to grow, and reseeds freely. However it is a non-native invasive species.

This is a harty plant which requires little care and makes a beautiful container plant. It grows well in sunny conditions without requiring an excessive amount of water. It is not bothered by any sort of insects that I've noticed. Although mine has not bloomed, it's still mid summer, so it's a bit early yet.

The seed requires light to germinate. Surface sow and keep moist until it germinates.
I cut the stems with seed pods that have dried and carefully shake them into a bowl to collect the many seeds.
You can also snip the seed froming pods before they set seed and dispose of them to prevent over seeding the next season.
Does not seem to be bothered by Japanese Beetles.

Easily grown from seed, Perilla frutescens 'Atropurpurea' was like a coleus plant but a coleus which thrived in full sun, heat and humidity! The deep purple-bronze leaves kept their lustre all summer long. Once established, the Perilla needed only occasional pinching to keep it full and bushy. Water needs were average, and remarkably, insects ignored the plant.

This plant appears to be native to our area. It will come up by the hundreds but is very easily pulled out, so I don't consider it a weed. It is very pretty with pink flowers growing in it (such as Echinacea purpurea), makes a good cut flower vase filler, roots in water, likes sun or shade, can be pinched like coleus for fullness. A friend of mine said it is one of those plants that "could grow between two cigarette butts in the crack of a NYC sidewalk". The plants range from very tiny to three feet tall and wide, depending on light, moisture, and fertility of the soil.

I love the accent the dark, ruffly foliage provides in the garden. It gets 3' tall for me in some places. Tolerates drought, clay soil, and shade. I've never noticed bug damage to the foliage. Once it starts bolting in the fall, though, it loses a lot of its attractiveness. And once the plants begin to set seed, I definitely pull them out since they self seed PROLIFICALLY! But this way, the self-seeding they do is manageable.

Although this has been used as a food plant, it is currently regarded as unsafe to eat in quantity. It is a beautiful accent in the flower bed, though, and its leaves make a great addition to bouquets.

Perilla is a member of the mint family. It has square stems,
deep reddish-purple leaves with a bronze metallic sheen.

The plant grows 18-36" tall and has pale lavender, pink,
or white flowers which grow in 3-6" long spikes. The flowers
are rather insignificant when compared to the beauty of
the foliage. It is fragrant when bruised or crushed.

P. frutescens 'Crispa' has bronze or purple leaves with highly
wrinkled margins.

P. frutescens 'Atropurpurea' has dark purple leaves.