Light:
bright indirect light; so place in front of an east, west, or north facing window. Too much direct sun burns the leaves and causes the beautiful leaf colors to fade.
Water: Calathea plants are very sensitive to the water you use. Hard water, soft water, fluoridated water, or water of poor quality causes the leaves to turn brown from leaf burn. The best way to water a Calathea is to use distilled water, rain water, or allow your tap water to sit out over night before using it. Keep the soil moist but never soggy. Allow the top 2-3” to dry out before watering. Never let a Calathea sit in water.
Plant Food: Fertilize a Calathea monthly in the spring, summer, and fall with a balanced plant food diluted to ½ the recommended strength. Don’t fertilize if it is not actively growing.
Temperature: Calathea plants like temperatures between 65°-80°F ( 15.6°-26.7°C), and do not like cold drafts or temperatures below 55°-60°F ( 12.8°-16.6°C). Hot temperatures cause the leaf curl.
Humidity: High humidity is a must. A Calathea gets brown leaf edges when the air is too dry. Humidity can be increased by placing your plant on a tray of wet pebbles (be sure the pot is on the pebbles and not in the water), setting a humidifier close by, or by grouping plants together to create a greenhouse effect.
Flowering: The leaves of a Calathea are more beautiful than many of the flowers on other indoor plants. With over 300 types of Calatheas , some varieties, such as Calathea Crocata, White Ice, and Brazilian have lovely flowers as well as spectacular leaves.
Diseases: The high humidity that a Calathea needs, encourages bacterial and fungal diseases which usually manifest themselves as leaf lesions.
Soil: Use a light, porous, indoor potting soil that retains water but still drains quickly. African Violet soil works well.
Pot Size: A Calathea Plant rarely need repotting.
Pruning: Cut off brown or crispy leaves as soon as they appear.
Propagation: Calatheas plants can be propagated by
plant division but it is difficult.
You can read more about Calathea plants in the Popular Houseplant section of the website.
