They don’t get direct sunlight, besides that I am a little lost as to what is going on with them. I water them every other week, this week I started spraying them with water (leaves are wet in the pictures)
Spraying with water doesn’t do much to improve humidity. All it does is increase the chance of a fungal infection on the leaves. By watering every other week do you mean you have a schedule, or do you mean you check the soil and water accordingly which happens to be every other week?
EasyConcert5246
these plants need a shitload of humidity i cant keep them alive either
Plantiago
This looks like the typical case of using tap water. You could try to use a water conditioner. In my experience, spraying the leaves does nothing to boost up humidity unless you do it every half an hour, and it would increase the risk of fungal infection so I wouldn’t do that.
sentient-seeker
Aside from the other commenter mentioned about misting does almost nothing for humidity and only risk fungal issues, I want to point out that plants aren’t meant to be watered on a schedule. Not even plants like these that love moisture consistently, they can develop rot with waterlogged soil and definitely crisp up and brown with not enough frequent watering. They also hate tap water because of the chemicals. They do require high humidity, personally I find minimum of 60% is what mine need. With high humidity and decent moisture retaining soil that drains properly, I only have to water every couple weeks. To diagnose we would need to know what the soil is, how you are watering, what the humidity is, and what kind of light it gets specifically.
stefii_904
Ugh. These are such drama queens, I’ve never had any luck with these types of plants. They love water. Pinch off the dead leaves.. maybe bottom water. Try using distilled water.
FrolleinBromfiets
The biggest mistake that I can see is that you picked a Calathea to care for.
They are definitely not easy.
transpirationn
Your first mistake was choosing a calathea lol. This is just a really hard plant to keep looking great in our homes.
yanqi83
Is this a new plant? Mine had crispy leaves. I put mine in my green house (high humidity) and do self watering pot with only filtered water. It took a long time to grow new leaves that don’t have crispy edges anymore. I chopped off the old leaves.
im_actually_a_badger
Despite what most people say, Calathea are extremely easy plants.
They are just sensitive to overwatering, which I suspect is what’s happening here. But also they don’t tend to like hard and chlorinated water.
You say “I water them every other week”, which says to me you water to an arbitrary schedule, not in a way they need it. Get a moisture probe and only water once they a completely dry. It could be more than a couple of weeks.
Also, improve your water by adding a conditioner like Stress Coat +. It removes the chlorine which can case issues like that.
peffervescence
I’d repot and check the roots. Try using a “tropical” soil. They’re better for managing soil water content. I’d also be watering more often.
Potty_for_plants
Mine has started to thrive since switching to rain water. In a pinch I use cooled boiled water. But yes, I second everyone who says they are drama queens!
Any_Anybody_9664
If these plants need humidity is it a good idea to take them during the humid summer and bring them back inside?
etsprout
In my experience, calathea hate being alive. Being dead is their natural state.
13 Comments
Spraying with water doesn’t do much to improve humidity. All it does is increase the chance of a fungal infection on the leaves. By watering every other week do you mean you have a schedule, or do you mean you check the soil and water accordingly which happens to be every other week?
these plants need a shitload of humidity i cant keep them alive either
This looks like the typical case of using tap water. You could try to use a water conditioner. In my experience, spraying the leaves does nothing to boost up humidity unless you do it every half an hour, and it would increase the risk of fungal infection so I wouldn’t do that.
Aside from the other commenter mentioned about misting does almost nothing for humidity and only risk fungal issues, I want to point out that plants aren’t meant to be watered on a schedule. Not even plants like these that love moisture consistently, they can develop rot with waterlogged soil and definitely crisp up and brown with not enough frequent watering. They also hate tap water because of the chemicals. They do require high humidity, personally I find minimum of 60% is what mine need. With high humidity and decent moisture retaining soil that drains properly, I only have to water every couple weeks. To diagnose we would need to know what the soil is, how you are watering, what the humidity is, and what kind of light it gets specifically.
Ugh. These are such drama queens, I’ve never had any luck with these types of plants. They love water. Pinch off the dead leaves.. maybe bottom water. Try using distilled water.
The biggest mistake that I can see is that you picked a Calathea to care for.
They are definitely not easy.
Your first mistake was choosing a calathea lol. This is just a really hard plant to keep looking great in our homes.
Is this a new plant? Mine had crispy leaves. I put mine in my green house (high humidity) and do self watering pot with only filtered water. It took a long time to grow new leaves that don’t have crispy edges anymore. I chopped off the old leaves.
Despite what most people say, Calathea are extremely easy plants.
They are just sensitive to overwatering, which I suspect is what’s happening here. But also they don’t tend to like hard and chlorinated water.
You say “I water them every other week”, which says to me you water to an arbitrary schedule, not in a way they need it. Get a moisture probe and only water once they a completely dry. It could be more than a couple of weeks.
Also, improve your water by adding a conditioner like Stress Coat +. It removes the chlorine which can case issues like that.
I’d repot and check the roots. Try using a “tropical” soil. They’re better for managing soil water content. I’d also be watering more often.
Mine has started to thrive since switching to rain water. In a pinch I use cooled boiled water. But yes, I second everyone who says they are drama queens!
If these plants need humidity is it a good idea to take them during the humid summer and bring them back inside?
In my experience, calathea hate being alive. Being dead is their natural state.