Plants of the genus Caladium are characterized by leaves that look like they have been painted by an artist. But, the fact that they are natural, makes many of us – myself included – want to obtain a collection in a few copies. Now, acquiring the specimens is only one thing: once we return home with our plants, we must know that if we want them to remain beautiful, we must take care of them.
And it’s not always easy. Caladium care can be a challenge when the climate in our area is very different from that of these plants in their places of origin.: the tropical forests of Brazil and Guyana. There, the temperatures are warm but not extremely high, the humidity is high, and although there are periods when it rains less, drought is not such a serious problem as in the Mediterranean region by example.
So how should Caladium care be? Since it is a tropical plant, which can be very demanding when grown in a country with a temperate climate, here is everything you need to know to keep it healthy and beautiful:
Contents
Put it in a bright place
Image – Wikimedia/Yercaud-elango
caladiums they should be in areas with lots of light. In fact, in their places of origin, they are found only in open areas, not in those where light barely reaches. For this reason, it is important that they are kept either in a room where there are windows through which the sun’s rays enter, or outside in an area where there is a lot of (natural) light.
But yes: they should never be exposed to direct sunlight: the leaves of these plants are not prepared to withstand it. You should also not put them right in front of the window pane, as they will also burn.
Pot or soil?
It will depend a lot on each person. Caladiums are bulbous plants, whose leaves are very delicate, to the point that if the temperature drops below 10°C, they die. Therefore, you must think carefully if you want to have them in your home or in the garden, because if you choose to have them indoors you will logically have no choice but to grow them in pots; but if you are going to have them outside, you can choose to have them in a container or plant them in the ground. Even if it is cold in winter in your area, you can plant them in the garden with their pot, and when autumn arrives, take them out and put them in the house.
However, it is also very important that you know that these plants need slightly acidic soil with good drainage. It is therefore strongly recommended to plant them in an acid plant substrate. There are plenty of companies selling it, including Battle or Flower, so you won’t have any trouble finding it. Another option is to mix coconut fiber (available here), also acidic, with 30% perlite. Here’s a video about it in case you’re curious:
Give it moderate watering
Caladiums are not plants that can do without a single drop of water for long. For this reason we must try to water them regularly, avoiding that the soil dries out completely so that they do not become dehydrated. But how often should they be watered? Good in summer, it will be frequently, because that’s when the substrate dries out faster; the rest of the year, on the other hand, we will do less.
In general, you should water 3 to 4 times a week during the summer, and about twice a week (or even less, if the soil stays moist longer).
Pay ’em while the good weather lasts
These are plants that need “food”, in addition to water, to be beautiful. So It will not hurt to pay them from spring, when they begin to germinate, until after summer. We will do this with a liquid fertilizer for green plants that you can buy here, or with a universal one (on sale here), following the manufacturer’s recommendations.
In this way, it will not take long to obtain beautiful specimens, which if they are in pots, will surely require a larger one in less time than one would think.
Moisten them if necessary
Caladiums are plants that live in humid environments, so if kept in areas where the environment is dry or very dry, they will have a very bad time. For this reason, in these conditions we will have to increase the humidity around them a little, for example with a humidifier, or by placing containers with water nearby.
This, yes: before doing anything it is very important to see what humidity there is in our area, because if it is high, we will have nothing to do. For example: on an island, or if you are near the coast, if the leaves were sprayed they would immediately fill with fungus, which is why it is so important to check the relative humidity before starting anything. that is. And for that, nothing beats having a domestic weather station at home, like this one:
Do not expose them to drafts if they are at home
Fan, air conditioning, or heating can dry out the environment, causing the caladium to dehydrate. For it, I recommend placing it as far away as possible from any device that generates draftsbecause whether they are cold or hot, the plants have a hard time.
If you keep them outside you will need to protect them from strong winds, but since they are relatively small they are easy to move.
Image – Flickr/James St. John
We hope these tips will help you provide the best care for your caladium.