Calathea Plant
Calathea roseopicta
Peacock Plant
Calathea plants, native to tropical South and Central America, Africa, and the West Indies, are grown primarily for their beautiful, brightly colored, upright, oval leaves. There are over 300 different types of Calathea plants, many being man-made hybrids created by tissue cultures. The various varieties have leaves with a purple undersides and various vibrant colorful patterns on the top side. Indoors, a Calathea is a table plant or short bush that rarely gets bigger than 24” tall and 24”-26” wide. A Calathea, with its exotic foliage, is difficult to care for, but like many other fussy plants, well worth the effort.
Light
A Calathea plant likes bright indirect lightVery few houseplants should be placed in direct sun. High light refers only to bright indirect light since direct sun often burns the leaves of indoor houseplants. An area that is too hot and dry encourages Spider Mites and causes blooms to quickly fade. A northern exposure really doesn't provide enough light for high light plants. These plants need to be placed directly in front of an east-facing window, within 1-3 feet of a west-facing window, and within 5 ft. of a south facing window. A high light area has over 300 ft. candles of light.; so placing it in front of an east, west, or north window is ideal. Too much direct sun burns the leaves and causes the beautiful leaf colors to fade.
Water
Calatheas 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 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 Plant sit in water.
Fertilizer
Feed monthly in the spring, summer, and fall with a balanced plant food diluted to ½ the recommended strength. Don't fertilize if the plant is not growing.
Temperature
Calatheas like temperatures between 65°-80°F (18.3°-26.7°C), and do not like cold drafts or temperatures below 55°-60°F (12.8°-15.6°C). Hot temperatures cause the leaves to curl.
Humidity
High humidity is a must! A Calathea plant 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 varieties of Calathea, some types such as Calathea Crocata, White Ice, and Brazilian have lovely flowers as well as spectacular leaves.
Pests
spider mitesLearn how to identify and treat Spider Mites on plants. This sucking plant pest causes yellow blotchy leaves with a red haze and a gritty feel to them., scaleSoft Brown Scale is the most common scale that attacks indoor houseplants especially ficus, ivy, spider plants, ferns, aralia, and schefflera. It appears as small bumpy brown spots that appear to move. As the scale sucks on the sap of the plant it secretes a sticky substance called honeydew. The honeydew attracts black mildew. Because of the shell-like exterior, sprays are only partially effective against scale. Wipe off the lines of brown oval bumps with your finger, a cloth, or a child’s toothbrush then spray the plant with Neem Oil. Use the Green Solution to clean off the black mildew., Mealy BugsLearn how to identify and treat Mealy Bugs, a houseplant pest that leaves sticky, white, cottony residue on houseplants. and AphidsSee a picture, learn to identify, and read about Aphid houseplant pests in the Glossary of Houseplant411.com. are house Plant PestLearn how to identify and treat the plant pest called Whitefly at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary/whitefly-plant-pestss that can be a problem.
Diseases
The high humidity that a Calathea plant needs also encourages bacterial and fungal diseases which usually manifest themselves as leaf lesions.
Soil
Use a good light porous indoor potting soil that retains water but still drains quickly. African Violet soil works well.
Pot Size
A Calathea rarely need repotting.
Pruning
Cut off brown or crispy Calathea leaves as soon as they appear.
Propagation
Calatheas plants are propagated by plant divisionLearn how to propagate plants by plant division at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary but it is a little difficult.
Poisonous Plant Info
Can I use the water from my fish tank to feed my Calathea. Is this a good idea?
It’s a great idea to use water from a fish tank to fertilize a Calathea plant. Your Calathea will love everything the water has in it.
Why are the the leaves of my Calathea Plant curling?
The leaves of a Calathea Plant curl under when the temperature is too warm or the Calathea Plant is in an area that is too bright.
Why are there brown spots on the leaves of my Calathea Plant?
Calatheas are very fussy plants and the leaves get brown tips, brown spots, or brown edges very easily. Here are some things that might be causing the problem: water with too many chemicals or if it is too hard or too soft, over fertilization, direct sun, lack of humidity, and plant diseases.
Should I cut off the flowers on my Calathea Plant right away like I do on some of my plants or let them stay on.
The flowers of a Calathea are beautiful and you should let them stay on the plant as long as possible and enjoy them. With plants like a Coleus, that has beautiful leaves and small inconsequential flowers, I recommend immediately pinching off the flowers.
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