''Coleus caninus'',

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

''Plectranthus caninus'', is a herb from the mint family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savory ...

, native to southern and eastern Africa from

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

and to India and

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

. A plant sold under the name "''Coleus canina''" or "scaredy cat plant" is supposed to scare off cats and dogs. An attempt to register "''Coleus canina''" to receive plant variety protection failed as it was considered to be only a clone of ''

Coleus comosus ''Coleus comosus'', synonym ''Plectranthus ornatus'', is a flowering plant from the mint family Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plant ...

'' (synonym ''Plectranthus ornatus''). These plants root easily from cuttings and tolerate mild drought conditions and full sun. Both the leaves and flowers of the plant are sticky to the touch and have an odor similar to

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...

that some animals find unpleasant, deterring both insect infection and grazing by larger animals.

Subspecies

Two subspecies have been described: *''Coleus caninus'' subsp. ''caninus'' – northern Tanzania to Eritrea, India to Myanmar *''Coleus caninus'' subsp. ''flavovirens'' (Gürke) A.J.Paton, synonyms ''Coleus flavovirens'', ''Plectranthus caninus'' subsp. ''flavovirens'' – South Africa to Ethiopia

References

caninus {{Lamiaceae-stub