Resorting to Tropicals for Houseplants
Create your own tropical paradise with these exotic houseplants. However, in their native lands these tropical plants have jobs to do.
By Susan MorganMore in Outdoors
Calathea(4 of 9)
(Calathea roseo-picta)
Calathea comes in a variety of foliage colors. Calathea roseo-picta offers alternating green colors on the top side of the leaves with reddish-purple undersides. In addition to being a lovely houseplant, it has also been used traditionally as an herbal medicine. "Leaves boiled in water are used as a medicine to treat mouth sores," says Coelho.
A common issue when growing calathea is its tendency to have browning leaf tips and edges. This is caused by a sensitivity to fluoride and salts in regular tap water. It can be remedied by providing high humidity (mist or set plants on a moist pebble tray, especially in the dry heat during wintertime) and watering plants with distilled water or rain water. Keep soil moist and place plants in bright, indirect light.
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