Calathea Sisters
Our Motto
"Marantaceae Are Not Divas,
You Just Have To Learn To Understand Them."
Interesting Facts in Words & Pictures, Experiences, Thoughts
Our Marantaceae collection
Impressions and Identifications
Goeppertia, (mostly) formerly Calathea, contains well over 200 accepted species, some of which couldn't be more different in terms of leaf shape or pattern.
However, there are also varieties that look confusingly similar - these are worth a closer look.
The small, bushy plants with their cute flowers are now established in regular stores.
But surprise, not all Marantas grow small and sweet.
The selection of stromanthe plants available commercially is relatively limited, and they are often sold as "Calathea".
However, stromanthes are no less impressive and certainly deserve their own spotlight!
Ctenanthes are often unfairly stigmatized as "twitchy Calatheas".
They often live in the "shadow" of Calatheas, but are equally interesting and beautiful!
TOP 3 Most Common Misconceptions
Calatheas need high
humidity.
No! Marantaceae do very well with a (in Germany) normal relative humidity of 45-60%.
This myth probably mainly comes from the US, where the relative humidity can easily be below 20% due to air conditioning.
Calatheas do not like bright locations.
No! Marantaceae do indeed like light, including additional light from plant lamps.
More light means more photosynthesis, which in turn means healthy and strong growth.
But beware! No direct scorching sunlight, such as at a south-facing window: this can cause burns on the leaves.
Calatheas do not tolerate tap water.
No! In Germany, Marantaceae also do fine with tap water.
The important thing here is that the water should not be too heavily limescaled.
This myth probably also comes from the US, where tap water is often chlorinated.
