Walking into a home or commercial property, you’ve probably found yourself mesmerized by indoor decor plants with gorgeous patterned leaves and flashes of bright-coloured leaf undersides but might have not known the name of the plants and were too shy to ask. Those plants are not just beautiful on the outside. They also have a beautiful name – Calatheas.
Calatheas are among the most popular indoor plants used to adorn homes, offices, and commercial properties. As the trend for houseplants with colourful foliage is not going away anytime soon, you will be seeing more of this plant wherever you go, maybe even get one to adorn your own home.
So, let’s have a closer look at these beautiful plants and their most popular types.
What are Calathea plants?
Calathea plants are indoor flowering and non-flowering plants with the main distinctive characteristic being bright and bold patterned foliage. The foliage is the exclusive feature that makes Calathea stand out from the rest of the indoor plants.
These plants come from the tropical areas of Americas and some parts of Africa where they grow beneath the canopies of tropical rainforests. And they have gradually become a staple in households, offices and commercial premises all over the world, used mainly as a decor accent to improve aesthetics and to purify the air.
Botanical summary
Calathea plants are tropical rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plants that belong to the Marantaceae family. Calatheas come in a wide array of varieties, either flowering or non-flowering, and they all have rich patterned foliage ranging from dark green velvety leaves to leaves with maroon undersides and geometric patterns. Also known as prayer-plants, these plants have got their nickname from the unique leaf movements that occur in the morning and at night. This phenomenon is known as nyctinasty, the circadian rhythmic nastic daily movement of leaves, when the plant moves its leaves up at night and lowers them down at day.
Types of Calathea plants
Calathea Orbifolia is the most common and largest Calathea plant characterized by large oval leaves striped with pale silver-green bands. It is a mid-sized plant that can grow 50 to 75 cm long. The plant is native to Bolivia and loves medium to high humidity levels.
All Calathea plants have air-purifying qualities, are pet-friendly and shade-tolerant.
Calathea Ornata is a beautiful indoor Calathea plant that has received many accolades due to its beautiful pink striped foliage with light burgundy undersides. Because of its looks, this plant goes by many different names such as zebra plant, peacock plant, cathedral plant and pinstripe plant. Calathea Ornata deserves a special place because of its gorgeous and sophisticated ornamental leaves that will leave everybody speechless.
All Calathea plants have air-purifying qualities, are pet-friendly and shade-tolerant.
Calathea Medallion is one of the most beautiful of the Calathea plants whose beauty cannot go unnoticed. The plant has “medallion”-like leaves that fold up at night like hands in prayer, showcasing beautiful burgundy undersides. But the plant is not considered to be a prayer-plant like the rest of Calatheas. Normally, if the leaves have curled, chances are it’s due to underwatering or the other way around.
As with all other Calatheas, this plant has air-purifying qualities; it is pet-friendly and shade-tolerant.
Despite being endemic to Costa Rica and Nicaragua, this plant has a difficult to pronounce the name, so it is often referred to as the Calathea Jungle Velvet. The plant has a gorgeous patterned foliage with dark green lanceoate leaves and purple udersides.
All Calathea plants have air-purifying qualities, are pet-friendly and shade-tolerant.
Also known as the Peacock Plant, Calathea Makoyana is a tall (can grow up to 60 cm in height) and slender variety of Calathea plants with beautiful unrealistic patterns. The plant has pale green leaves and a beautiful dark green feathered effect that starts in the middle of the leaf and extends to the outer edges, slightly resembling a peacock’s tail. The plant also goes by name of Cathedral Windows.
Calathea Crocata is a flowering plant with gorgeous yellow flowers, almost a rare sight in the wilderness due to environmental degradation. Besides the beautiful starry flowers, the plant also impresses with its touchy-feel leaves that are puckered and ribbed.
Calathea Zebrina also referred to as the Zebra plant, is an award-winning plant with beautifully patterned foliage that resembles a zebra. It’s a clump-forming plant with long stalks and leaves positioned at the top of the plant. The plant has beautiful velvety patterned ovate leaves, dark green stripes and purple undersides that don’t get enough visibility because of the plant’s horizontal growth.
Calathea Iancifolia is a beautiful indoor plant that also goes by the name of the Rattlesnake plant because of its upright, lance-shaped leaves and dark green strokes with clumpy edges. The touchy-feel velvety undersides give any extra splash of colours making this plant an amazing decor accent.
All Calathea plants have air-purifying qualities, are pet-friendly and shade-tolerant.
Calathea White Star is one of the most elegant decorative plants with perfectly painted-on white stripes, and a pink pint on its pale green leaves close to the midrib. It is an exquisite touch to an ideal minimalistic design.
Quick Summary of Taking Care of Calathea Plants
Calatheas are low-maintenance indoor plants. However they can be pretty finicky if not following the basic maintenance tips. If you want your Calathea plant to thrive, this is what you should know –
Sunlight
Calatheas are variegated plants, and as such plants, they prefer indirect sunlight. Medium to bright diffused light is preferred, although they can be shade-tolerant as well. Direct sunlight can lead to issues like burned edges, yellowing and loss of colours.
Water
In order to thrive, Calatheas require slightly wet soil at all times but not soggy. Overwatering will cause the stems to rot and the leaves to droop or wilt. The same effects can be caused by underwatering as well. Water your Calathea plant little but often to ensure the soil is constantly damp.
Temperature
Since Calatheas are neotropical plants, they prefer warm to hot temperatures in between 18 to 25 degrees Celsius, however, they’re also tolerant to 15 degrees Celsius.
Humidity
High humidity levels are mandatory for Calathea to thrive. If the air is dry, use a mister or keep the plant next to a humidifier to increase humidity levels. Gently go over the leaves with a wet cloth to take away dust and dirt and allow for better moisture absorption.
Feed
Calathea may require a nitrogen-rich fertilizer to be applied onto its foliage during the growing season to ensure better growth and more vibrant colours. In flowering Calatheas, the fertilizer will make the plant give more flowers. Don’t use the fertlizer in winter because the plant is dormant and growth will naturally slow down.
Although Calatheas come in a wide range of types, they all require similar care. Calatheas are low-maintenance but can be pretty fussy if you don’t fulfill the basic requirements like indirect sunlight, high humidity, damp soil, watering little but often and warm to high temperatures. Undoubtedly, all types are pleasing to the eye and make for a great decor accent inside any home, office or commercial property.