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Was fed up of having a constantly brown leaved calathea. Had never used tap water and was next to a humidifier. I watched this video and then picked up my calathea to check how she was, and suddenly noticed spider mites! If not for this video I wouldn't have checked, so thank you! Wish me luck with spider mite eradication!

When the algorithm delivers without needing to search.. just what I needed, thank you!

I cant even keep a succulent alive and I bought this 😂 I had no idea it was for seasoned people. Wish me luck.

I solved my Calathea problems permanently by dumping it in the trash bin. Life's too short for temperamental plants!😄

I’m distinctly amateur but have recently expanded my home office pals to include Calathea. We’re all getting on just fine as I read on his cv that he’s a needy little character. He’s got his odd behaviours but is a good fit for the team (me and my plants). He’s got great bantz

I appreciate your straightforward approach in addressing the problems & solutions in caring for the Calathea 👍👍

I have my calatheas right in front of my east facing window, and they love it!! My daughter in law regularly buys me plants, and upon seeing how well the calathea does in front of my 20’ east facing apt window, she’s bought me a few, and I love them!!

Another thing you can do is just add a few drops of API stress coat to your tap water. It's used for conditioning aquarium water, and it's very cheap and can be found in any pet store. It removes chlorine and binds chloramine and heavy metals so the water is safe for fish. of course, it doesn't remove everything to the point of distilled water, but it's worked great for me. I don't get brown leaf tips and edges, and I don't have to buy all that plastic bottles. Also, if you have fish tanks, use the water from water changes to water your plants. My plants that get the "fish poop water" are the best growers I have.

I lost all my leaves on my beautiful medallion calathea. I was devastated!! But, I remembered what you said about the tubors and I kept watering and tending to the plant even though there was nothing there. Now, I have 2 spikes, one is nearly opened and another is barely out of the dirt. I was so excited!! Thank you because had you not told us about the tubors, I would have thrown it away like I did my Dottie!! I didn't know back then about the tubors. So, you have been a great help!! Thank you!

I needed this video as I was having issues with my Calatheas and couldn't believe how close you are to my hometown!! Thank you for uploading this!

Thank you so much I really really enjoyed watching you tell us all how to properly look after our Calathea plants. Very very useful and helpful advice and information. Please stay safe and well too xxxx Mags ❤❤❤❤

New to this channel, but subscribed after two videos because you give me new insights, while many channels tend to repeat what has been said multiple times already

I have one calathea. The first I have ever had. It makes a lot new leaves on a regular basis but I have had big issues with browning tips. I moved it from my living room to my bathroom which has a lot of light and of course high levels of humidity. The washing machine is there and I also hang and dry my clothes in this room. I put a cup under the pot and I put water in it. I no longer mist it as it never made things better. Well things have improved a lot! But what a temperamental plant!

Repotting My Severely Rootbound Calathea 👉 kzfaq.info/get/bejne/fMCBZJBh0dHHgps.html

Just bought my Calathea as liked the look of the plant. I normally use filtered water to water flowers. I used tap water as it said tepid water on the label. I noticed one leave going brown. So I an going to use filtered water. Thanks for the useful information.

For the last, two months I have only watered my Ctenanthe Grey Star with filtered water and she has never looked better. All the brown tips have gone and the plant is thriving. The filtered water is the only thing I have changed . Thanks for the tip!

Your timing is impeccable. My little calathea reseopicta has giving me so many problems. It’s a cutting I rescued from a larger plant that was fully non-revivable. The only little stem and leaf that was somewhat okay I snipped and rooted in water. Now it’s in some soil with perlite and it got a gnat infestation. So I cleaned all the old soil and sprayed it with anti-bug stuff specifically for houseplants. And now after two days in quarantine it has gotten all crispy and the top soil has white mold. This little cutting has been the black sheep of my plant family for weeks now 😂

I’ve killed a few Calatheas… now I have two Calathea Makayona plants which I’ve found to be incredibly low maintenance. I use tap water, let them dry out completely between watering, and have no additional humidity in my home, and they do great. I’d recommend the Makayona to anyone who wants a Calathea that isn’t a pain in the butt! I might try my hand at a different kind at some point again with your tips, thanks!

The game changer for me was bottom watering. I did it twice and it really saved my plant. Now that it is saved I am back to top watering it and I'll keep an eye on it.

My rufibarba(/eldergrass I think) did SO much better after I started using water filtered in a Brita pitcher. It's not optimal, but definitely better than just tap water. I also cut her down quite brutally this spring and she's almost back to the size I purchased her as. No humidifier and a couple meters back from the window. Now she's thriving-as long as I can remember to water often enough 🫣 Still growing halfway through November! Great video as usual! ☺️

Richard. You have taught me to be a better plant parent ❤. I now use my rain barrel water 💦.

I don't have a calathea but I watched anyway. Knowledge is always a useful thing. An hour later, on our local Green Thumb WhatsApp group, someone posted a photo of. . . a calathea! . . . and asked what's wrong with it. "It has plenty of light," they explained. I sent them straight here. :-)

I didn’t know about chloramine - thank you so very much. I have lost two Calathea and thought I was on the winning side for my remaining ones. I am now! Thanks once again.

The dehumidifier tip is brilliant thank you! 🎉

Seeing this video makes me want to try calathea's again. Might try again later this year!

Thank you for the tips. I just got one yesterday because the store had a buy one get one free sale. I didn’t realize they were difficult 😂

Hello! Thank you for your video. I watched it with pleasure admiring your plants. I thought i'd share my experience with Calathea Warszewiczii, because, first of all, it's total success. A little background story - i've been after Calatheas for over 20 years, i kept buying and "killing" the warszewiczii type in particular about 5 times. Non of them grew healthy at mine, eventhough i thought i had tried everything, and all of those Calatheas would eventually die within a year if i remember correctly. ...It was until about 4 years ago i bought this current plant, of course it was in a glorious state, thriving and blooming, absolutely gorgeous. And then that sacred dance with all common issues began again.. i'll skip the details, because you all, Calathea lovers, are aware of them:) So one day i decided to repot it and use a new potting mix. It was an orchid mix (i'm also an orchid lover) but not that one that consists mostly of bark but the one for, say, Cymbidium orchid, that consists of peat (turf) mostly, and bark. After that i noticed, that if i adjust my watering schedule, my calathea would demonstrate pretty normal growth.. But if i was late to water or watered it too soon i'd still have spots on the leaves, and sometimes there were signs of both too much and too little water on the leaves.. untill i put it on wick watering.. I didn't buy any ready to use watering systems, i just dragged a wet 1cm wide piece of a stocking through the soil from the hole in the bottom of the pot through the soil up to the side of the pot on top and mount the pot over a suitable plastic container with water (i use fish tank water) Since then, my Calathea has been "drinking" as much as it wants, when it wants.. She's been producing healthy leaves, new sprouts, all healthy growing.. (of course there are things to keep an eye on, like if there's water in the container beneath, or if the wick needs cleaning as sometimes during the summer it gets covered with green algae etc. (actually it's better to use a dark container for water.. well, you can figure it out) And also right now it is blooming for the first time! A couple of weeks ago i noticed the first flower coming out and now there is a second one half way through.. i expect a third one too. Isn't it wonderful:) That's all i wanted to share with you.. thanks for reading this and hope it helps. Cheers.

Ooh ..now i know why my plants leaves look like that...thank you so much for the tips👍

I collect rainwater that comes off of my roof into two, 10gal pickle buckets. I use a coffee filter to it to get rid of any debris that gets in the water 🥰👍

i have two, both live on top of my fish tank, both doing well. Consistency is the key for mine i use a cheap water filter, i have the Stromanthe Triostar which i thought to be a really difficult plant but mine is fine so long as I am consistent and that in this case even extends to temp on cold nights, i move it next to my boiler but return it in the morning. Richard nailed it in this vid Calatheas are not the best starter plants as they are moody if not cared for correctly but if you do they are amazing! great vid mate thank you!

New subscriber. Never saw your channel before. You are very articulate. I’m going to try another Calathea using your tips. 👍🏼

Caletheas are one of my favourite plants. I solely use rain water alone for all my house plants and I never have brown leaves. I live in Auckland New Zealand and it rains alot in spring.

I have one growing in a large bottle of leca and it's doing very well in that, it also has a lot of water in there.

You learned and told us after this video, that we can use the conditioner that's used for fish tanks. I still had to watch 😊

Hello there, I bought a calathea with shriveled up leaves, but I am enjoying seeing the leaves open and close,so I know there is hope for her, by the way, I love all your plant advice😊

I have 2 makoyanas which are the loves of my life, and 1 zebrina. All 3 are situated with my other plants in front of a west window with blinds. I was determined to grow a green thumb in honor of my recently deceased Mother💔 who was an avid gardener and plant grower. The 2 makoyanas are really for her and thank goodness they are doing magnificently well. I am still learning, but no brown tips whatsoever and countless new leaves. The zebrina is not QUITE as happy, but still doing fairly well. It does have a few brown tips and some mild browning along a few edges, but it also has sprouted 5 or 6 new leaves in the short time that I’ve had it. In my paranoia to not overwater I tend to under water, and I imagine that I may not be keeping her moist enough. Could also be too much light. (I try to adjust the blinds when the sun hits it but a few times I forgot) I use distilled water on them, and now that winter is here, the humidity stays around 50 - which I know is too dry. Before, it would hover around 60. I thought I was going to have to introduce some additional humidity over the winter, but I was encouraged to hear you say consistency was more important, so maybe they’ll be okay, I’m in love with them! ❤️

More great info, thank you.

Thank you, that's is very informative.

never had a green thumb but wanted to start my plant journey this year. so i went plant shopping in july and bought myself around 10 plants, 2 of them are calatheas. so after a few weeks i learned more and more about the plants that i bought. and when i found out that calatheas are not that easy to care for, i was a lil bit nervous. but luckily all my calatheas are still happy living and growing and now i own 4 of them. a lil bit proud of myself. 😂

This is exactly the advice I needed I’d just about given up on my 2 👍💔

I have calathea and maranta about ten or more,you give advice 💯 perfect..,about watering,humidity and much more..thanks a lot bro !! Always excited n happy to watch your videos,thanks again 😘

Taking notes for my Makoyana that's currently being a sassy girl. Crispy leaves galore even tho the Orbifilia and Ornata not far from her are overall doing ok (new growth and limited browning). These plants are headscratchers for sure, but I love them so much 🥺 Thank you for this list of tips, there were one or two I wasn't doing yet, so there's still hope 😊

Excellent, thsnks for how to calathea .thumbs up 👍👍👍

Thank you SO much for this video! You answered all my questions that NO other video has touched on 🥰 I got my first calathea (ornata) two months ago and while it was gorgeous the first few weeks, it is now barely hanging on! At first just the tips were brown, and then way too quickly all the leaves started turning yellow, all the pink lines faded, the edges turned nearly black and curled inwards…I wish I could share pics! Only 5 leaves left that I trimmed all the edges on, and only it’s newest leaf is still shiny. I knew I had a BIG problem when even its only unfurled leaf turned yellow and mushy and flopped over within two days! Mistake #1, not only was I using tap water (although I do fill jugs and let the water sit overnight - but this is something I learned is not so effective for chlorine evaporation!), I was misting it with tap water as well, major fail - my poor plant 😭 on top of that, I was overwatering it (in my defense, the top two inches of soil were dry, but the pot was too big!) So the past two waterings have been with distilled. Mistake #2, it was living in my bathroom with a pebble tray, two wet rags hanging next to it, and next to my newer calathea (rattlesnake) I got last month and while all that is fine…the humidity is generally between 50-99%, which I now know is way too big of a range and inconsistent. Well let’s just say I just got done cutting off 5 yellow bottom leaves on the new one! Which brings me to mistake #3, the bathroom has an east facing window and the calatheas were about 8 feet away from it…I thought I was doing good on the lighting until I woke up earlier than usual today to see them getting PUMMELED with direct rays 😩 I feel like SUCH a failure! Pretty much everything you can do wrong, I did wrong. I’ve moved them to the bedroom, which has a north facing window and blinds, but now I’m afraid it’s not gonna be ENOUGH light 🤦‍♀️ I feel like these plants are ticking time bombs and every day brings them closer to irreversible death 😔

Have to give you credit here fantastic information for tap water. We only use rainwater here which does take longer but we wouldn't have it any other way. If you want to kill a ficus very quickly use tap water. Great video as always mate.

I have my calathea in the bathroom and although it has some brown spots, it’s grown so much and is a beautiful plant.

...I have 20plus kinds of Calathea. . .they are not my favorite but i have them - they become lush, die and regrow. . .THANK YOU FOR THE C-TIPS

Thanks for the tips. I have two calatheas and they love the northern light and being together. My peacock variety is very tall and has flowered. I water with distilled water and cut off dead leaves. I just had to do trial and error and videos.

Great information, maybe I will look into getting a filter.

I just bought one. I'm scared already. They are gorgeous. I recently purchased an indoor greenhouse but noticed that the plastic tent has an odor and I am afraid to put it in because I know from watching your videos that these plants hate any type of chemicals. Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you for all of your very helpful videos because I'm sure that many of my plants would not have survived my over-parenting.

Great info..I’ll move my plant to a darker area and start using distilled water….thanks a bunch!

The first plant I bought was a Calathea. And it's freaking thriving! Pushing leaves out every week or so. To be honest, it's just pure luck because I have a nice flat plants tend to like, and I let an app remind me when to water it. But the leaves did tend to slightly brown on the tip. I'l try filtering the water! Thanks for the tip!

Learned alot

Thank you Sooo much!

hi thanks for the tip for using tap safe for my spider plant you are great for plant imfomation like used vedge water iam learning a lot like making soil acidic with tea

Thank you 🇨🇦

The difference in growing my Calatheas was absolutely remarkable once I started using a humidifier. I have it running just about all day - no more brown edges🎉🎉

Instead of filters, I've been using ceramic balls for quite while now. Will try on my calatheas, thank you for the tips.

Touch wood, I have three, and they have all been in my house for about two months, so far so good 😂 I bought a Stella prior to doing any research and assumed it would shrivel up within a week, so I think I must be doing something right. Right??? I have only used distilled water with super thrive. Two are sitting in their nursery pots on a damp bed of moss for increased humidity. I don’t use a humidifier because of you. It would be inconsistent. I’m a newbie to plants but no brown tips so far. I have watched this video about three times! Thank you for the help. Fingers crossed that I will make it another two months. ❤

For my other plants I always use reptisafe for my plants also! I will specifically use rainwater for my calathea

I just discovered your channel and I've been watching all your videos! Have you ever worked with the succulent lithops? Also known as living stones. I just got some spontaneously and I can't find much info about them, but they're so cute.

I typically use tds meter to check the amount of inorganic and organic substances present in taps water or any water that you wished to check its quality. This can be helpful to plants sensitive to the chemicals present in water like calatheas or carnivorous plants. Anything lower than 20 ppm is good enough for me.

Wonderful Video. Do these tips apply to brown tips of Aglaonema (typically my Pictum Tri Colour) also?

I totally agree! I've been giving my Calatheas filtered tap water from the beginning and they hardly developed any brown tips despite the humidity not being very high (not low either). I grouped them together further away from the window. The last two months the adult plants were not doing well anymore. A lack of light I suspect since the older leaves turned yellow. Also fungus gnats were a problem. The soil was moist, but not soggy though. Fungus gnats prefer moist soil for their egs and I can't let the soil dry out like I do with my succulents and cacti. I recently gave the adult plants a humidifier that I leave on all day so I could move them closer to the window (and heating) where they receive more light during those dark months. I love Caltheas, but I will never buy a White Fusion again though. The leaves are paper thin and it's impossible to keep it happy. My White Star is doing fine. For people who like Calatheas, but find them too high mantaince try Ctenanthes instead. Similar look, but much easier to take care of.

The tip from the other video you have of a tray with water works too... That works better for me to keep constant humidity i just added gravel. But always keep water on that tray like you recomeneded and guess what that plant has its own humidity

I was over watering my prayer plant so I made a wicking system after watching one of your vids on how to water plants while you're away. I took a pretty vase and a thick string and gave it a reservoir to drink at it's own pace. It's only been a week but the two sprigs I had left are perking up and reaching for the grow light. It already looks much much happier than it did. When I re-potted it I found the bottom of the pot was basically waterlogged. It took about a cup of water on it's own, but now I also have a handy little water supply nearby to pop my cuttings into to propagate. So instead of watering the plant, I'm just making sure it's buddy vase is nice and full. Thanks!

Calethea plants are very sensitive of location. Due to heat waves I brought 4 calethea plants in my living room from my covered entrances because 3 of them got evening sunlight and got brown leafs but the fourth one was in complete semi-shade area with no direct sunlight and no issue. This 4th plant got leafs drop issue so i kept it to its original place and can see the difference. I would suggest to observe your calethea very carefully to check best location.

Hi Jennifer from Trinidad is this plant also know as the Prayer Plant ? I love this plant alot and it seems that we live in one place being that you guys live so far away and i am in the Caribbean and we have similar plants or the same lol. I love them all whether the foliage or the flowering kind God blessed us with beauty to look at and enjoy. Stay well be safe take care keep yr plants healthy and happy they will love you

Hello! Do you have a video of your favorite gardening gadgets for Christmas gifts? LOVE your planting tips, thank you!

I got mine and its in water chillin but how do I pot it? I have a nice big pot for him

Ohh my goodness I'm going to try 😢

I generally avoid Calathea's and Prayer plants as I just can't keep them alive. I live in Melbourne and we have some of the best water in the world which is sourced from protected forests and requires very little treatment due to natural filtration. However, small amounts of chlorine and fluoride are added to our water which makes me think this is at least part of the reason why I've struggled with these plants so much. I might try using some sort of inline filter or catch rainwater on the roof of our building. Thanks for the tips!

Hello! Thanks for the tips ☺️ please could you tell me where I could find that plant ladder / stand at 5:16?

I use only rain water for my indoor calatheas but still they brown. Put them outside under some shade and they thrive...

I have not ventured to try a calathea just yet... when I do, I might put it in a self-watering pot.

I have used distilled water from the start but still get the Browning. But overall the plant still looks good and now's needs a bigger pot.

I live in Canada and my calathea always throws a tantrum when winter comes around and the heat turns on; so now she lives in a greenhouse box and is much happier. (:

Someday I may come back to trying calatheas, but until then alocasias are my substitutes. MUCH less water 💦 finickiness, surprisingly.

I have a small Freddie cal and a rose cal. These are my first attempts at calathea…. Freddie got too dry one time and I think I lost half the plant still looks sad honestly. Rose doing good - the new leaf has opened no fuss so far hope it stays that way lovely addition to my collection.

I have a Calithea for the first time. Thank you for your tips. Im confused as to whether to get a humidifier or not? It has some brown crispy leaves already. Ill try the filteted water. How far away from a radiator should it be?

Once the leave is dead or on it way, how do I clip it off??

I had the same problem until I started using my aquarium water to water these plants. Brown leaves disappead and the new growth rate is fantastic. I even have one growing in my aquarium. Of course only the roots are in the water. I use this aquarium water to water all my house plants. There is no smell.

We collect rain water for our pot plants.

I didn’t know you could divide calatheas! My stromanthe triostar is beginning to over grow the 10 inch pot that it’s in.

Awesome

What about the soil? I just got 2 new calatheas and transferred them to lechuza pon, as many bloggers suggested. Which soil or mineral substrate do you prefer and why? TIA :)

Very helpful, thank you! One question, I use stuff in my tap water to clear out chlorine for my fish tank, will that help to clear up the tap water for my plants?

Distilled water is the answer 💚

I always used tank water from my fish tanks to keep all my plants in good leaf and btw filtering water does NOT remove these toxins unless you have a very expensive filter.

Can salt lamps damage my Calithea? I had a big one on the same shelf and wonder whether that may have contributed to some of the leaves going brown and crinkly

I use filtered rain water as we use our own water tanks and its been tested as good water. I found running the calathia under a warm shower once a week for about a minute seems to help.

Muy interesante el aspecto que refieres a los humidificadores .Le damos un rato de vapor y luego apagamos . ¿que sentido natural tiene esto con su ecosistema? es muy logico. Gracias por tus consejos

Mine is growing in my bathroom. I've noticed lots of new growth since I've brung it home. Then I watered it for the first time and closed the vent in my bathroom and noticed that leaves hidden in the middle are yellow and new leaves growing in have browning on it. I purchased a second one and placed it in an area on my job that recieves very few light. Slow new growth, NO browning and I haven't watered it yet

Have you got any tips for a calathea (living / prayer plant) that gets spider mites? I've cut it down to just 3 leaves, all of which have brown tips still and sprayed with pesticide, sprayed with soapy water (I use dehumidifier water) and done a neem oil watering in the soil. It's perked up, but looks worse for wear and not growing any new leaves. I'm still noticing some webbing coming back. Hoping the neem will take effect soon. It's so frustrating.

Great video, I have Calathea's and also suffer with the crispy brown edges on some leaves, I use tank water but have discovered recently that the PH of the water although it's rain water is quite high Alkaline as its in a concrete tank....would the high alkalinity affect them? Its is putting out new leaves and in fact has 3 coming on right now, it's also back 3-4ft from the window and is getting filtered morning light only. It sits on pebbles and I keep water in the saucer for some humidity. Is there anything else I should do apart from now trying distilled water. Thank you for very informative video's

I had a problem with calatheas too.untill I saw from another video that the guy made soil mix only using sand and cowdung compost.i did the same and within no time my plant showed new shoots and kept plant km indirect light.its doing so much better now

Can you use watering globes for calatheas? Or does that keep the soil too moist at all times?

Thanks for the helpful info! Is water from the fridge dispenser filtered enough? Also what if all of the leaves have damage? Do I cut them all off? 🙈

All my 6 different calatheas have gotten so much better since I got my humidifer and started using filtered water I left out for 24 hrs (Don't understand how it doesn't help to dissipate the chlorine as when I leave a glass of water out overnight I definitely notice a change in the smell and taste?!) Have started using stress coat in all my water too. Only my 2 original plants have crispy edges now.