Growing Spilanthes (Toothache Plant): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 10, 2026
Spilanthes, commonly called the toothache plant, is grown as much as a novelty edible as an ornamental. Chewing a leaf or flower bud produces a genuine numbing, tingling sensation, traditionally used to ease tooth pain.
Easy and fast from seed
Transplanting is recommended, sowing seed 6 weeks before the last frost, a quarter inch deep. Direct-seeding in spring after the last frost also works, sown at 4 to 6 seeds every 6 inches and thinned to one plant, or a small clump, every 6 to 12 inches. Germination is quick, just 5 to 7 days at 72-76°F, and the plant establishes faster than most flowers here. Space plants 12 to 18 inches apart.
The buds are the most potent part
While the leaves are edible and make an unusual salad addition, the small yellow-and-red flower buds carry the strongest numbing effect. Leaves can be picked at any time once the plant reaches a few inches tall, and picking continues through and after bloom; use fresh leaves for the best flavor.
Spilanthes has no well-established companion pairings, and nothing it needs to be kept away from. At 2 plants per square foot, it’s an easy, quick-to-establish conversation-starter for the Garden Designer, equally suited to a bed edge or a container.
Source: Spilanthes (Toothache Plant): Key Growing Information, Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
Companion planting guide for Spilanthes (Toothache Plant) · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 2-11. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Mature height: 0.5-1 ft
Method: Either: Start indoors for an earlier harvest, or direct-sow outside for less fuss. Either works.
When to plant spilanthes (toothache plant), by zone
Every zone spilanthes (toothache plant) grows in. Pick your zone in the header and it will be highlighted here. Each zone links to its full page.
| Zone | Start indoors | Sow or plant out | Bloom |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2a & 2b | Apr 8–Apr 15 | May 27–Jun 3 | Jul 31–Aug 7 |
| 3a & 3b | Apr 18–Apr 25 | Jun 6–Jun 13 | Aug 10–Aug 17 |
| 4a & 4b | Apr 3–Apr 10 | May 22–May 29 | Jul 26–Aug 2 |
| 5a & 5b | Mar 29–Apr 5 | May 17–May 24 | Jul 21–Jul 28 |
| 6a & 6b | Mar 14–Mar 21 | May 2–May 9 | Jul 6–Jul 13 |
| 7a & 7b | Feb 27–Mar 6 | Apr 17–Apr 24 | Jun 21–Jun 28 |
| 8a & 8b | Feb 11–Feb 18 | Apr 1–Apr 8 | Jun 5–Jun 12 |
| 9a & 9b | Jan 4–Jan 11 | Feb 22–Mar 1 | Apr 28–May 5 |
| 10a & 10b | Dec 19–Dec 26 | Feb 6–Feb 13 | Apr 12–Apr 19 |
| 11a & 11b | Nov 20–Nov 27 | Jan 8–Jan 15 | Mar 14–Mar 21 |
Bloom dates are about 65 days after the sow or plant-out date, not after starting seeds indoors.
Zone 2 sows before zone 3 here, which looks wrong and is not. USDA zones rank winter cold, not season length, and zone 2 is mostly interior Alaska, where hard winters come with warm summers. More on what a zone measures.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Spilanthes (Toothache Plant) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 2 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 0.5-1 ft.
Varieties worth considering
- Straight-species spilanthes (Spilanthes oleracea): Johnny's Selected Seeds sells this species plain, without competing named cultivars; the numbing effect and small yellow-and-red flower buds are traits of the species itself. (source)
Why each variety is listed comes from the source shown next to it. We haven't grown these ourselves yet, so treat this as a research-backed starting point, not a personal endorsement. The buy links are separate from those sources: they go to seed suppliers that sell that exact variety, and we may earn a commission on some of them.
Where to buy spilanthes seeds
None of the seed suppliers we list carries spilanthes seeds right now. A local garden center or a specialty seed house is the place to look.
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing spilanthes (toothache plant)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Spilanthes (Toothache Plant): Grown as much as a novelty edible as an ornamental, since chewing a leaf or flower bud produces a genuine numbing, tingling sensation traditionally used for tooth pain.
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