Angel Trumpet Plant (Brugmansia): Growing This Fragrant Tropical Beauty Indoors

Botanical Name: Brugmansia x candida

The Angel Trumpet plant dazzles with enormous, pendulous trumpet-shaped flowers all summer and well into fall. Give this tropical evergreen warmth, humidity, and plenty of sunlight, and it will thrive. A sunny window, greenhouse, or sunroom is ideal. You can also move your container to a sunlit porch or patio for the summer—though be warned: those magnificent flowers are intensely fragrant and may be overpowering in enclosed indoor spaces.

This vigorous climber has vining stems densely cloaked in dark-green oval leaves. Scrolled flower buds emerge at stem tips in summer, opening into white, pink, or yellow trumpets up to 10 in (25 cm) long. Newer cultivars offer bicolor and double-flowered forms.

Train Your Plant Provide a sturdy trellis to support the vigorous climbing stems and showcase those glorious hanging flowers. Use plant ties to secure each vine loosely—don't restrict growth—and re-tie as the plant expands.

Angel Trumpet Plant Care Essentials

Let the Sun Shine In Place your Angel Trumpet in a sunroom or by a sunny window. Moving it outdoors for summer dramatically increases blooming power. Just bring it back inside before nighttime temperatures drop below 50°F (10°C).

Repot in Spring This is one of the few flowering plants that actually prefers a large container. Move up one pot size each spring as needed. Use a pot with drainage holes to prevent soggy soil and root rot.

Give It a Winter Rest Angel Trumpet is tropical, not hardy, so keep it at room temperature year-round. Though evergreen, growth slows in winter. Stop fertilizing and water sparingly, but never let the soil dry out completely.

Prune It Back To control size, prune after flowering—by half if necessary. Since flowers form at the tips of new vines, pruning encourages more blooms. During the growing season, deadhead spent flowers to promote continuous flowering.

Watch for spider mites and treat immediately. Maintaining high humidity helps deter these pests, which thrive in dry conditions.

CAUTION: All parts of this plant are extremely poisonous. Keep away from children and pets, and wear gloves when handling.

Angel Trumpet Quick Reference

Origin: Hybrid with parents native to subtropical South America

Height: Up to 6 ft (1.8 m) in a container, spreading equally wide. Give it plenty of space.

Light: Bright light to full sun. At least 4 hours of direct sunlight daily.

Water: Water thoroughly spring through fall. Cut back in winter when growth slows.

Humidity: Moderate to high (50% relative humidity or higher). Use a humidity tray or room humidifier.

Temperature: Average to warm, 65–80°F (18–27°C). Minimum winter tolerance: 50°F (10°C).

Soil: Any good potting mix.

Fertilizer: Feed every 2 weeks spring through fall with a high-phosphorus liquid fertilizer diluted by half.

Propagation: Take 3–4 in (8–10 cm) stem tip cuttings in early spring and root in moist soil. A heat mat yields best results.