Indoor flowers are a great opportunity to decorate your home, add coziness to it, and also, if you wish, add an exotic touch to the design. It is in this that an unusual guest from South America will help you, croatia or saffron calathea. The original shape and color of the leaves, exquisite flowers, as well as ease of care contribute to the popularity of this plant. What are the features of calathea and how to grow it at home - this will be discussed in this article.

Botanical description of the plant

This herbaceous plant belongs to the Marantov family, which combines a number of luxurious and unusual species. Did you know? From Greek, the name of the flower is translated as “basket”. Among its relatives, crocata is distinguished by bright colors that are able to overshadow even the original leaves. Kalatea can be recognized by its characteristic root rosettes, from which vertical shoots stretch (up to 80–90 cm in height), where the leaves form.

These are dense fleshy plates of an oval shape up to 20–25 cm long; they feel like velvety to the touch and attract the eye with spectacular stripes of a light shade. They are attached to the stem using petioles of various lengths. The plant loves the sun, so its petioles are flexible, so that the leaves turn in the direction of the light.

The plant blooms from late autumn to early spring. At this time, small flowers of spike-like shape located on high peduncles appear on the calathea.

Thanks to the beautiful leaves and bright colors, saffron calathea has excellent decorative properties.

Root system	superficial rhizomes
Stem	vertical shoots up to 80–90 cm tall
Leaf shape	oval
Leaf color	dark green with light stripes
Flower shape	spike-like
Flower color	bright orange

In order for a plant to please its excellent appearance, it is necessary to create suitable conditions for it and provide quality care.

Conditions for successful growing at home

If you are just planning to get a calathea in your home, then it will be useful to find out about the optimal parameters for its comfort.

Lighting

As a native of South America, crokat is very fond of light, but it is important not to go too far with it.

When choosing a place for calatheas, remember the following recommendations:

• avoid direct sunlight, which can burn the calathea;
• much better if diffused light enters the flower, even if it is in a slight shadow;
• in summer, it is better to keep a representative of this species on the western window, and in winter, the southern side is also suitable.

Important! If the calathe does not have enough light, then its leaves will not please with a bright color. But the excess of sun makes them turn brown.

Ventilation

The heat-loving calathea loves fresh air, but does not tolerate drafts, sharp and cold wind gusts.

Temperature mode

In addition to light, calathea is necessary and warm.

The minimum comfortable temperature for this flower is +20 ... + 23ºС in the summer and not lower than + 18ºС in the winter. It is not recommended to grow croqueta on the balcony, since sharp changes in day and night temperatures can slow down the growth of the plant, and eventually lead to its death.

How to care at home

Knowing where to place the calathea, how to choose a suitable place for this flower, we can talk about the rules for caring for it.

Watering

First of all, control the regularity of watering. Did you know? In Central and South America, more than 150 types of calatas live in natural conditions. The plant is suitable only for standing room temperature water or slightly warmed up. In summer, usually watering is carried out 2-3 times a week, and in winter only 1 time. In cold weather, it is also important to examine whether the topsoil has dried out before watering. There is no critical difference in the volume of liquid in summer and winter, however, if the temperature drops to an extreme minimum, it is still necessary to reduce the amount of water.

Since the roots of Calathea are close to the surface, for additional hydration during warm periods, the flower pot can be placed on a pallet with wet peat or wet pebbles.

Remember that an excess of moisture, as well as its lack, is harmful to a flower. Under such conditions, he first folds, and then drops the leaves. Also, do not allow stagnation of water in the pan, because this provokes root rot.

Video: Croat Calatea Home Care Tips

Spraying

These exotic plants love not only warmth, light, but also humidity.

Ideally, it should be kept at 90% for the active growth and development of calathea, and a fine atomizer can help with this.

Important! It is better to spray with warm water, but try to moisten the air around the crocuses more, and not the flower itself. If moisture is retained on the leaves, this can lead to the development of diseases.

Top dressing

Fertilizers for calathea are applied in the spring - summer 1 time in 2 weeks, while the plant has a dormant period. In winter, feeding is also done periodically, but much less frequently and in a smaller volume. At this time, it is enough to simply add a few drops of fertilizer to the irrigation fluid.

For this type of indoor flowers, purchased liquid fertilizers are used for decorative and deciduous species, diluted to the desired consistency according to the instructions.

Pruning

Saffron calathea does not need to be trimmed or crown shaped.

Transfer

For better plant growth and flowering, it is advisable to transplant it once a year.

Video: Calathea Crocat houseplant transplant

In this process, several recommendations must be considered:

• the optimal time for this is March;
• carefully pick up the pot. We need a wide (crocodile roots on the surface), but a shallow container, the bottom of which will be covered with drainage;
• in this case, the soil is slightly acidic, combining sheet soil, peat, sand (2: 1: 1) or using a purchased substrate for arrowroot or senpolia.

Breeding

Saffron calathea attracts attention, adds originality to the interior, so many lovers are interested in the process of its reproduction.

You can get a new flower in several ways:

• dividing root tubers;
• having a stalk or leaves;
• growing from seeds.

Important! If you buy the finished mixture, add charcoal (prevents root decay) and coconut fiber (provides better oxygenation of the roots).

Division

This is the most common method that is used during the next transplant. Calathea has curly roots, so it is easy to separate 2-3 good roots with already arisen leaves from a common tuber. If there are no leaves yet, then carefully pack the selected roots in polyethylene and leave them in a warm place until sprouts appear.

Greened seedlings are planted in prepared containers, and for better rooting, they are covered with a film on top, where the temperature is kept at + 23 ... + 24ºС.

How much time will pass before the first flowering - it depends on each plant individually, however, this method of reproduction is the fastest among possible.

Cuttings

You can get a new plant from the leaf and from the cuttings.

To do this, take a leaf with a growth point from an adult specimen and dip it in a small pot with soil. Lightly pour and cover with a glass cap or regular film to create a better microclimate.

As cuttings, shoots with a length of 15 cm and with several leaves that already have growth points can also be used. The planting process in this case is the same as with the sheet.

Seeds

Though propagating calatea with seeds and for a long time, it is quite realistic. Croats have low germination, so expect that it will take more than one year to grow a plant. Important! For the appearance of the first shoots of calathea, no more than 30 days are needed. First of all, the grain is lowered into a pot with soil to a depth of not more than 5 mm, and then cover it with a film under which the temperature is kept at +23 ... + 25ºС.

Growing difficulties

Calathea requires proper care, otherwise problems in its development are possible:

1. If the leaves turn yellow, dry out, then there are several options: burns from the sun, dry air, cold microclimate.
2. Sometimes on the flower the edges of the leaves begin to turn brown due to discomfort of the roots: this means that they suffer from cold and dampness.
3. Folded leaves - from heat and dryness.
4. If it seems to you that you are watering the flower normally, and the leaves on it still fade, then, most likely, the roots suffer from decay .
5. When the bright color of the calathea fades, it means that too much light falls on it.
   

Sometimes problems with croqueta occur due to pests.

Did you know? Due to the ability of calathea leaves to rotate in the direction of the sun, the plant became known as the “prayer flower”. Among insects, they often harm the plant:

• spider mites;
• thrips;
• scale insects.

You can find them on the underside of the leaves, where they pull the juice from the flower. You can get rid of pests by collecting them and washing the leaves with soapy water, or by treating the plants with insecticides.

Many varieties of calathea grow in the world, among which the type of crocodile is distinguished by its bright colors. Such an exotic plant will be an adornment of any home. In addition, it does not require too much time for care, although in terms of living conditions, calathea is very finicky.