Calatheas are a beautiful species of plant. They range from all shapes, sizes and colors. They truly can give your home or space that subtle tropical vibe.

They might look nice and all, but looks might be deceiving with this plant.

The Calathea is the unofficial diva of the plant world

I have had my share of downfalls with several types of Calatheas in the past. They’re beautiful – don’t get me wrong, but these are not for someone who is new to plant parenthood or gets attached easily.

This type of plant can be troublesome, even for the most experienced plant parent. I’ll go over some information about Calatheas and touch on some basic calathea care tips so you can become prepared to take on this plant, if you dare to.

Environment For Calatheas

Calatheas are native to the floors of the rainforest.

So, you already know when it comes to calathea care they are humidity reliant and need a wetter environment. In their natural habitat, they sit on damp soil from the constant rain of the rainforest.

When the moisture starts to evaporate and the surrounding trees contain the evaporation, this turns the rainforest floor into a humidity dome.

Because of their native location, on the rainforest floor – they usually only get sprinkled with sunlight due to the trees. The only sunshine they get is from a breeze moving the trees around, but only for a short period of time.

Calathea Care

Caring for a Calathea at home can be simple, but only if you can get the environment just right. And I’m not talking about turning your home into a rainforest.

There a few ways you can get the humidity levels in your home up, without creating a whole eco system. What has worked in the past for me is trying to mimic the natural rainforest dome, with a terrarium. This has worked pretty well for me, so far.

Check out my blog on how to increase your humidity for your houseplants

My Calathea White Fusion was starting to deteriorate fast until I added a terrarium, then all of a sudden it starting growing new leaves!

Other ways to boost the humidity so you can become successful with Calatheas is to get a humidifier. You can also bunch plants closer, which can bounce humidity off of each other.

I do have one Calathea on a pebble tray and it’s doing pretty good. Overall just try to raise the humidity as best as you can.

Calatheas don’t need a lot of sunlight. They do best in indirect bright light. I wouldn’t recommend them in any kind of long standing direct sunlight or afternoon rays. This can burn them.

Due to the fact that they like moisture I keep mine in a well draining pot with a well draining soil on bottom and coco moss on top to help retain some moisture.

Common Problems In Calatheas

Calatheas are known to be spider mite magnets. Even though spider mites don’t love moisture, they tend to love the leaves of the plant.

Here’s how to get rid of those pesky pests

Root rot can be a big problem for Calatheas, as well. Their natural environment is wetter than some plants. When your trying to mimic that, it can sometimes be hard to judge on how moist they need to be. A moisture meter would be a good investment for Calatheas, they can gauge on how much water there is in the soil and if its starting to dry out.

Calatheas will tell you if they need more humidity or water. They’re world-class performers. They’ll either curl up and wilt or create crispy brown edges on their leaves.

For instance, I took the terrarium off my White Fusion for 20 minutes and in that time I had one leaf completely curl up and get eventually become brown and crispy.

She deserves a Grammy for that performance.

Be careful with the humidity in your home as well. Too much humidity can create mold. Sometimes mold can grow in the humidifier or on soil. Make sure you check the plant and the walls/area around the plan to make sure nothing is growing where you don’t want it to be.

Calathea Beauty

Ooof. Calatheas are beauties though!

I don’t think I’ve seen a Calathea that I didn’t like the look of. They come in all sizes and colors. Take the Calathea Vittata, which has fine white pinstripes on each leaf, or the Calathea Ornata – also stripy but has a darker purple complexion with pale pink stripes.

But, who couldn’t love the look of the Calathea White Fusion. Each leaf on the White Fusion looks to be as if someone painted white marks on each leaf. Which makes each leaf look unique.

A lot of Calatheas also have a purple or red underside to their leaves. Which just adds to their beauty.

Calathea Care Is Simple – Once You Get It Down

A Calatheas can be a great addition to your collection. You can have success with them. But like I had to, caring for one can be a little trial and error.

Once I got them in a spot they were happy in, I was rewarded with their beauty. They’re are some Calatheas that are a little easier than others, like the Vittata or the Ornata.

But, I’d hold off on the White Fusion for a little bit.

Here’s my opinion on Calatheas

Do you have any Calatheas?