Have you ever wished you could add a touch of color to your green houseplants? The calathea roseopicta, otherwise known as the Rose painted calathea, might be just the right plant for you.
The leaves on this houseplant are nothing short of mesmerizing. It almost seems as if their leaves are hand-painted.
The rose-colored foliage is guaranteed to wow any of your guests. It’ll also vamp up your home decor with its unique appearance.
Read on to dive into the characteristics of this indoor plant and the care that goes into maintaining a Calathea roseopicta.
Characteristics of Calathea Roseopicta
Did you know that the Calathea species represents revivals? The phrase ‘turn over a new leaf’ is owed to their species. It’ll make a wonderful present for your friends and family starting fresh at some point in their lives.
The Calathea roseopicta is a show-stealer. Its leaves are adorned with a light green feathery pattern surrounding its edges. The fluffy patterns are concentric on each other.
Inside the houseplant’s leaf is a lined rose palette. Meanwhile, the underside of the leaf is a deep purple color.
There are a few species of the Calathea roseopicta, the Dottie, and the Medallion. A Dottie has pinkish linings around the leaves, while a Medallion is mostly covered in light green markings.
The Calathea roseopicta is commonly known as a prayer plant. The origin of the name comes from the leaves folding at night resembling praying hands.
This perennial plant originated from the north-western areas of Brazil. The name calathea refers to basket or inflorescence. The other half of the name, roseopicta translates to the rose color of the plant.
How Big Can Calathea Roseopicta Get?
You can grow this houseplant to up to 20 inches in height. Most Calathea plants can have 24-inch wide leaves.
How large your Calathea roseopicta will grow largely depends on how well you take care of it. You know you’re doing a good job if one leaf unveils itself every month or so.
That being so, you need to understand how you can properly care for your Calathea roseopicta since it has the potential to grow older than a couple of years.
How to Care for Calathea Roseopicta
Contrary to most other houseplants, the Calathea roseopicta is notoriously difficult to care for at times. The plant may require a bit more TLC.
Once you get the hang of caring for your Calathea roseopicta, you’ll realize it’ll be worth it. You get to have a beautiful tropical plant in your living area, what’s not to love?
There are a few factors to consider when generally caring for any houseplant, such as temperature and humidity. Considering these factors, here’s how you can take care of your Calathea roseopicta.
Light
Despite Calathea roseopicta being a tropical plant, you want to avoid any direct sunlight coming the houseplant’s way. In their native region, they grow in the dense underbelly of the rainforest far from most light.
They should still be fed with some indirect light to maintain their brightly colored foliage. You can try to keep them in your living room or bedroom, as long as they’re provided with a shade.
You can also place your Amazonian houseplant next to a transparent curtain to skim out the harsh rays coming its way.
During the winter months, you might not be getting enough sunlight in your area. You can then revert to artificial lights. Another option is you can keep your Calathea roseopicta outside since the sunlight won’t be as intense as during summer.
The best area you can keep your houseplant is in a north, west, or east positioned room. If you place your Calathea roseopicta in direct sunlight, their leaves might curl up to decrease the amount of surface area exposed to the sun rays.
Temperature
Growing in the rainforest, you can hardly expect the Calathea roseopicta to withstand chilly weather. We recommend not going lower than 61 degrees F. Ideally, the temperature should range between 64 and 75 degrees F.
You should look out for any blowouts of sudden cold or hot air. Avoid placing it near an air conditioner or heater. A hot or cold breeze might dry up your houseplant. Even a warm desktop next to your Calathea roseopicta can damage its precious foliage.
We also recommend that you be mindful of the temperature of where your plant is sitting, rather than the overall room temperature. This is especially important in office settings where the temperature is adjusted, but certain areas are warmer than others.
You can put a thermostat in your Calathea roseopicta’s soil to make sure its temperature is normal.
Water
Since the Calathea roseopicta originates in the dense moisture-rich canopy of the Amazonian rainforests, water is its lifeblood. You might want to be more generous with this houseplant’s water intake.
Nevertheless, you wouldn’t want the soil to be overflowing with standing water since that’s a breeding ground for bacteria and root rot. You should keep your water levels high enough where a few inches deep your soil is moist.
You want to keep your soil’s surface relatively dry in between every watering session.
With regards to what kind of water you should use, the Calathea roseopicta has some specifications. If you’re going to use tap water, keep it out overnight to allow the chemicals to dissolve. Otherwise, you can use accumulated rainwater or distilled water.
They don’t call the Calathea roseopicta a fussy plant for nothing. The houseplant doesn’t go by a strict watering schedule. Instead, you’re going to have to inspect it every few days to check its condition.
You might have to water your Calathea roseopicta frequently over a week during the summertime. Wintertime requires less watering since the houseplant doesn’t grow then or hibernates.
To keep things simple, you should go with the approach of watering less but more. This means you’ll want to use less water, but water the houseplant more frequently. It might be difficult during the first few weeks to get the hang of its watering maintenance. The best way to ensure its growth is to always monitor your Calathea roseopicta.
Humidity
If you already live in a humid area, your Calathea roseopicta will have higher chances of thriving and growing. The houseplants adore moisture-filled air.
If your area is low on humidity, your Calathea roseopicta might develop brown edges in its leaves. This will hinder its growth potential.
Here are some ways you can increase your Calathea roseopicta’s humidity intake.
Spray with Water
The easiest way to maintain high levels of humidity for your houseplant is to spray them regularly. We advise you to mist them in the early mornings so you can give them a chance to evaporate any excess water. Night mistings might result in overwatered soil.
Get a Pebble Tray
You can also keep your Calathea roseopicta pot in a water tray with pebbles to receive some extra humidity. Make sure your water is about an inch deep or so to avoid it drying up. You’ll also want to keep your pot over the pebbles so it doesn’t touch the water unless you want a fungal infestation.
Keep Your Houseplants Together
If you have more houseplants lying around, you can group them all to create a mini rainforest for your Rose-painted Calathea. This will ensure a more humid environment.
Get a Humidifier
Another, more commercial method, is to simply purchase a humidifier. Not only will your Calathea roseopicta benefit, but your room will feel fresher.
Get a Terrarium
If you’re looking for a more aesthetic humidifying option, then a terrarium might be just the solution. It’ll provide your houseplant with a closed environment to absorb all the moisture being evaporated.
Use a Plastic Cover
A more practical solution could be covering your Calathea roseopicta with a plastic bag to imitate the same effect of a terrarium. You’ll know it’s working once you see your bag fog up with some condensation.
It’s hard to pinpoint the exact humidity levels in your home. You can use a handy tool such as a digital hygrometer to measure the moisture in the air.
Fertilizer
You might think that since the Calathea roseopicta is a high-maintenance plant, it might need some fancy fertilizer, but the opposite is true. The houseplant is a light feeder and doesn’t need much fertilizer.
Light and organic fertilizer is the way to go with this houseplant. You can add your diluted, nitrogen-filled fertilizer every couple of weeks or every month to your Rose-painted Calathea.
The best time you can fertilize your Calathea roseopicta is summer and spring. Those are the growing seasons of most houseplants.
There are two different types of fertilizer you can use. The synthetic kind is usually more affordable and concentrated. You’ll need to dilute it by half or quarter strength to avoid overfeeding your Calathea roseopicta.
The other kind is organic. It provides a balanced diet of nutrition for your houseplant. It can consist of worm castings or fish emulsion to keep your Calathea roseopicta at a steadier growth rate.
Soil
As mentioned earlier, you want your soil to be damp during watering sessions. Since that’s the case for Calathea roseopicta, you need to find soil with maximum aeration quality. Moisture can quickly turn to home for bacteria and parasites.
One of the best methods to increase your soil’s oxygen intake is adding perlite to your soil mixture. A third or fifth of the perlite mixture should give you healthier results. An additional peat mix should give you even better results (two parts peat mix and 1 part perlite).
Another factor you should look out for is how light your soil is. A good rule of thumb is to check how your soil responds to being watered. If you see accumulated water on the soil’s surface, it’s too thick and lacks enough oxygen.
The optimum soil should be well-draining and allow water to flow through inside to reach the plant’s roots, without causing any overflowing.
If you’re wondering when you should repot your plant, check the roots. If they’re densely packed inside your pot, it might be time for a repotting. You can change pots every year or so. Make sure you repot during spring since that’s when it’ll be the strongest and less vulnerable.
Can You Propagate Calathea Roseopicta?
Having one Calathea roseopicta might not be enough for you. Looking to propagate your houseplant? Well, it’s easier said than done in this case.
You can’t propagate your Calathea roseopicta by using stem cuttings like most other houseplants. Instead, your best bet is to use the seed method.
This involves buying Calathea roseopicta seeds from a farm shop or a trusted horticulturist and planting the houseplant. Here are a few steps to get you started.
Step 1: Find Your Seed’s Home
You can either keep your seed in a little pot or a propagation tray. Try to use a peat mixture in your soil startup to provide adequate nutrition for your seedling. You can add sand to your mixture as well.
Step 2: Prepare Your Growing Area
Start by sticking your seed in your damp soil. Try to push it around 10 mm deep into your soil mixture.
Considering this is a growing seedling, it’ll need as much care as possible. Place it in a brightly-lit area with the highest humidity and adequate temperature. You can enclose your pot or tray to give you better chances of growth.
Once you see a sprout forming, you can take off the cover and let it breathe.
Step 3: Repot
If everything goes according to plan and your Calathea roseopicta grows over an inch or more, you can start to move it to a different pot. The bigger space will allow more room for growth.
Issues with Calathea Roseopicta
Luckily, most issues you’ll face with your Calathea roseopicta are solvable. For instance, one of the most common problems you might expect is finding the right water intake. This might be a trial and error process.
The most accurate indicator of any issues facing your houseplant is their leaf. Let’s delve into each condition below.
- Leaves turning yellow could be a sign of overwatering and root rot development.
- Droopy leaves are mostly normal, but if they persist you might be overwatering or underwatering. It could also be a result of blasts of hot air.
- Color fading from leaves might indicate too much direct sunlight.
- Spottiness and bugs are tell-tale signs of an infestation. This can be easily treated with insecticides and other home remedies using oils.
- If your leaves are curling, your Calathea roseopicta might need some hydration and humidity.
To Conclude
Owning a Calathea roseopicta might require more attention than most other houseplants. That being so, the ambiance it brings to your home will make its maintenance worth it.
Make sure to follow a proper care routine for your Calathea roseopicta. It’ll add some years to your plant’s life and give it more potential for growth. Always be on the lookout for any signs that point to a lack of nutrition.
The Rose-painted Calathea will make a beautiful and colorful addition to your houseplant collection. We hope yours will last a long time.