Strobilanthes dyeriana, the Persian shield or royal purple plant, is a species of flowering plant in the acanthus family Acanthaceae, native to Myanmar (formerly Burma).
The Latin specific epithet dyeriana honours the English botanist Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer (1843–1928).[1]
Growing to 1m (03feet) tall and broad, it is a tropical evergreen shrub, cultivated for its dark green foliage with bright, metallic-purple stripes radiating outward from the central leaf vein. In proper conditions, it will also produce pale purple flowers.
With a minimum temperature of 10C, S. dyeriana grows best in USDA Zones 10–11.[2] In more temperate climates it is grown as a houseplant. It prefers a warm, humid position in good light. As the intense purple colour may fade with age, it is often treated as an annual.[2] In the UK it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[3] [4] S. dyeriana is sold as a very common landscape plant due to its vibrant colors. In order to produce a high quality version of this plant, it is best to use a 200 mg*L-1*N from a complete fertilizer.[5]