Hello everyone,

My second Calathea Furry Feather is dying. It does not make sense - this is supposed to be one of the least temperamental Calathea varieties.

I have had this plant for about six (6) months and it was doing great. It had a total of about 10 leaves. Then, suddenly, it started losing leaves. This plant lives inside in a high humidity area (70%+).

Does anybody have any suggestions? What am I doing wrong? I have watched hundreds of Calathea care videos and I can't figure it out.

Hi,
I have had a rufibarba, which I guess this is.
I don't have it anymore which tells me despite being a more tolerant Calathea, it couldn't survive my care- and I have dozens of other houseplants.

The similar shaped ornata (rattlesnake) also took a turn after I divided it- my friend's portion went on to grow and thrive at least a while.

That looks like a tiny pot. I shy away from plants that small as I feel they have very little energy reserve for any challenges they face. But at ten leaves, you would think it was into its energetic 'teenage' years at least.

Hope someone else has (better) advice.

Most often Calathea fail because they need more HUMIDITY than the average house can provide. When the leaves start browning and dying the owner thinks it not enough water and then overwaters, making things worse. You can try growing it in either a humidified terrarium or under a cloche.

sallyg said: Hi,
I have had a rufibarba, which I guess this is.
I don't have it anymore which tells me despite being a more tolerant Calathea, it couldn't survive my care- and I have dozens of other houseplants.

The similar shaped ornata (rattlesnake) also took a turn after I divided it- my friend's portion went on to grow and thrive at least a while.

That looks like a tiny pot. I shy away from plants that small as I feel they have very little energy reserve for any challenges they face. But at ten leaves, you would think it was into its energetic 'teenage' years at least.

Hope someone else has (better) advice.

Gina1960 said: Most often Calathea fail because they need more HUMIDITY than the average house can provide. When the leaves start browning and dying the owner thinks it not enough water and then overwaters, making things worse. You can try growing it in either a humidified terrarium or under a cloche.

Thank you for the replies. I was extremely careful not to overwater this Calathea and always used a soil moisture meter before watering. This plant also lives in a high humidity area. Hopefully it will bounce back, but I doubt it.

When you say high humidity, what is the average humidity?

Gina1960 said: When you say high humidity, what is the average humidity?

About 70-75%.

24/7? Or is it variable?
This is the kind of humidity calathea need inside your house. Humidifier, enclosed space, cycling on and off 24/7 about every 30/45 minutes and they thrive

Gina1960 said: 24/7? Or is it variable?
This is the kind of humidity calathea need inside your house. Humidifier, enclosed space, cycling on and off 24/7 about every 30/45 minutes and they thrive

The humidity is around 70% during the day and drops to around 45-50% during the night.

I put all my dying/dead Calatheas and some other tropical plants inside a clear plastic box and then put an essential oil diffuser there (it is basically a small humidifier).



The picture was taken immediately after I turned the oil diffuser on. It became much more foggy after just 10 minutes. Hopefully this will revive some of my plants.

Thank you for the suggestion.

I think it may not revive the current ones, but it would certainly help any new ones. I had to bring 2 calathea inside from the greenhouse in the summer, most don't mind the intense heat out there, but these specific ones are unidentified species that do not seem tolerant of extreme heat. I put them into 2 small sealed terraria and they love it. The box has a layer of Aliflor (LECA) on the bottom about 2" thick and then is filled to the soil line with water. Once the doors are closed, the natural heat from the sun shining through the window causes about 90+% humidity. Its the same principle as a cloche, but you can't always find cloches large enough for a nice sized plant.

Gina1960 said: I think it may not revive the current ones, but it would certainly help any new ones. I had to bring 2 calathea inside from the greenhouse in the summer, most don't mind the intense heat out there, but these specific ones are unidentified species that do not seem tolerant of extreme heat. I put them into 2 small sealed terraria and they love it. The box has a layer of Aliflor (LECA) on the bottom about 2" thick and then is filled to the soil line with water. Once the doors are closed, the natural heat from the sun shining through the window causes about 90+% humidity. Its the same principle as a cloche, but you can't always find cloches large enough for a nice sized plant.

Unfortunately, you were right - none of those calatheas were revived. It is shocking how much humidity they need.

Wow, 90% humidity sounds about right for a typical Calathea. I might buy one more Calathea (yellow fusion), but that is it - no more Calatheas for me after that, I am done.