Stromanthe sanguinea 'Triostar'
Triostar, Calathea Triostar
Central & South America | Tropical & Subtropical
A perky plant in cheerful shades of pink and green. The variegation has an artistic quality—each leaf seems to be painted in deliberate, broad brushstrokes. Often mistaken for their cousin, the Calathea, this Stromanthe shares the ability to raise and lower their leaves from night to day.
diva status, bright indirect, drought averse, mid-size, bushy or dense, clusters, tabletop, pet friendly, prayer plant, tropical, subtropical, patterns, color, variegation, shelf
This plant prefers to stay fairly moist, but certainly not soggy sopping wet. Check the soil frequently in summer to determine if it's starting to dry out. In winter, you can be a little more lax, allowing the top inch or so to dry out before watering again.
Your Stromanthe will thrive in medium to bright, indirect light. Try to keep away from rays of direct light as this will likely scorch the leaves and fade the pretty leaf patterns.
Thrives in higher humidity—try to provide additional moisture by grouping your Stromanthe with other humidity lovers or placing in a humid spot, like the kitchen or bathroom. Of course, a humidifier will be your best bet for guaranteed humidity.
Adaptable to average indoor temperatures, but will not accept exposure to cold drafts or dry heat from vents. The leaves are likely to wilt dramatically and begin to yellow.
A non-toxic plant pal! You can introduce this plant to your whole family, pets and children included. While it'll be a sad day for you and your plant if someone takes a nibble, you don't have to worry about poisoning anyone!
Indoors, this plant can grow up to 2 ft tall with a similar spread (when mature and with enough light)!
Generally low, bushy clusters of relatively short, densely packed stems. Leaves stand upright at night and spread down and out during the day. Works best on a table or shelf to show off the incredible foliage.
Slender, spear shaped leaves. Soft brushstrokes in shades of pink and green create a painterly pattern on the front of each leaf, while the undersides and stems are a vibrant magenta.
Notorious for their goldilocks ways, Stromanthe can also be particularly sensitive to minerals in tap water. If you notice yellowing or browning tips and have already ruled out humidity, watering, and temperature as the culprits, you might try leaving a pitcher of water out for 24 hours or so, at which point most of the bothersome minerals will have evaporated.
Not only are Stromanthe showstoppers with their gorgeous leaves. They can move! Stromanthe are equipped with a special little joint where the stem meets the leaf, allowing them to raise their leaves at night (as if in prayer) and lower them during the day to capture the most light.
Water
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Keep soil just moist, but not soggy.
This plant prefers to stay fairly moist, but certainly not soggy sopping wet. Check the soil frequently in summer to determine if it's starting to dry out. In winter, you can be a little more lax, allowing the top inch or so to dry out before watering again.
Light
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Medium to bright, indirect light.
Your Stromanthe will thrive in medium to bright, indirect light. Try to keep away from rays of direct light as this will likely scorch the leaves and fade the pretty leaf patterns.
Humidity
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Sensitive to low humidity—keep in a humid spot.
Thrives in higher humidity—try to provide additional moisture by grouping your Stromanthe with other humidity lovers or placing in a humid spot, like the kitchen or bathroom. Of course, a humidifier will be your best bet for guaranteed humidity.
Temperature
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Can adapt, but doesn't like sudden change.
Adaptable to average indoor temperatures, but will not accept exposure to cold drafts or dry heat from vents. The leaves are likely to wilt dramatically and begin to yellow.
Toxicity
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Non-toxic. Completely pet safe!
A non-toxic plant pal! You can introduce this plant to your whole family, pets and children included. While it'll be a sad day for you and your plant if someone takes a nibble, you don't have to worry about poisoning anyone!
Size
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An in-betweener. Not too big, not too small.
Indoors, this plant can grow up to 2 ft tall with a similar spread (when mature and with enough light)!
Format
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Low bushy clusters of densely packed stems.
Generally low, bushy clusters of relatively short, densely packed stems. Leaves stand upright at night and spread down and out during the day. Works best on a table or shelf to show off the incredible foliage.
Leaf Shape
|
Slender leaves with a unique painterly pattern.
Slender, spear shaped leaves. Soft brushstrokes in shades of pink and green create a painterly pattern on the front of each leaf, while the undersides and stems are a vibrant magenta.
Pro Tip
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Can be extra sensitive to the minerals in tap water.
Notorious for their goldilocks ways, Stromanthe can also be particularly sensitive to minerals in tap water. If you notice yellowing or browning tips and have already ruled out humidity, watering, and temperature as the culprits, you might try leaving a pitcher of water out for 24 hours or so, at which point most of the bothersome minerals will have evaporated.
Fun Fact
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These leaves are on the move!
Not only are Stromanthe showstoppers with their gorgeous leaves. They can move! Stromanthe are equipped with a special little joint where the stem meets the leaf, allowing them to raise their leaves at night (as if in prayer) and lower them during the day to capture the most light.
Thrives in a rich, very well-draining potting mix—you can use a good quality potting mix labeled for indoor plants or make your own mix. You can try a 2:1:1 mix of peat moss, potting mix, and perlite. Ensure the pot has the appropriate drainage and don't forget to pour out any excess water collected in the drainage tray or cachepot.
Try to repot every 1-2 years in the spring, especially when tending to a younger plant. Increase the pot size by about 2 inches each time or until you're satisfied with the size. It's still important to repot at this stage, but it'll be an exercise of refreshing the soil, keeping the pot size the same, and possibly doing some root trimming to restrict the plant's growth. More on repotting here.
If you're not already planning to repot, you can fertilize during the spring and summer months. Once to every two months should be plenty. No fertilizer is necessary during the winter when plant growth naturally slows down. You can try a balanced liquid or water-soluble fertilizer—always diluted more than the recommended strength. More on using fertilizer here.
While no specific pruning is required for this plant, it's always good practice to regularly remove yellowed or dying leaves and any fallen plant debris. Ensure your scissors or pruners are sanitized to avoid spreading disease or pests. If you're dealing with browning leaf tips and have resolved the underlying issue (usually humidity or water type), you can carefully trim these tips back if the look bothers you. More on grooming techniques here.
Propagation by division is super simple with this plant. The plant's underground rhizomes will push out their own offsets. These developing plants, or pups, can be separated into independent plants by simply making a clean cut through the rhizome (the much thicker, horizontal "root"). You can pot up this baby plant directly in soil. The best time to propagate is always in spring or summer when the plant is most resilient. This is also an excellent opportunity to repot the parent plant. More on propagation techniques here.
Pale areas across the leaf that look dusty or like tiny pinpricks on closer inspection.
Unfortunately, these are a tell-tale sign of spider mites. These wretched pests pierce the surface of your plant's leaves in order to suck out the nutrients—leaving behind pale areas and pinpricks. These pests seem to love the textured surface of the Stromanthe leaf since it produces anchors for them to easily build their webs and hide their eggs. Left unchecked, these buggers can decimate a plant.
Whenever you're dealing with pests, the first step is to isolate you plant away from all your other plants to avoid potential spread. Next, you can begin a regimen of neem oil, diluted with water a bit of mild soap. You'll want to spray this solution liberally all over your plant, including leaf undersides. And repeat the treatment every few days to ensure you've eradicated the pest and any eggs.
Preventative measures include maintaining good air circulation and avoiding overly dry conditions. Spider mites in particular love warm, dry conditions.
Whole plant looking less and less variegated. New leaves are mostly solid green.
This is most likely due to insufficient light. While Stromanthe can be quite tolerant of low light conditions, they may begin to loose their variegation to compensate. Greener leaves means more efficient photosynthesis.
Improve the lighting conditions for your Stromanthe. These plants prefer medium to bright, indirect light. Make sure to adjust your watering to accommodate the increased light.
Multiple leaves are wilting and turning yellow—particularly the older, lower leaves. You may also notice stunted growth and mushy stems.
The most likely culprit is overwatering and initial signs of root rot. When a plant's roots sit in waterlogged soil for too long, a fungal infection can quickly take over, causing the roots to rot (turning brown and mushy).
First, ensure that your plant has appropriate drainage (both in terms of well-draining soil and plenty of drainage holes in the plant's container).
If you think you've caught the overwatering early on, you can simply let the plant dry out more than you have been. Allow the top few inches of soil to dry out before watering again. Continue monitoring and only water when needed. You may also try using chopsticks (or something similar) to poke holes in the soil to help the roots get more oxygen. And finally, you can try to "wick" the excess moisture out of the soil by placing the whole pot (with drainage holes) in a tray or container with dry soil. This new layer of dry soil should soak up some of the excess moisture from the waterlogged areas around your plant's roots.
However, if you suspect a serious case of root rot, you'll definitely need to take a peak at the roots by removing the plant entirely from their container. If there are any black and mushy roots, trim them back completely before repotting with fresh soil in a new or sterilized container.
Leaves turning brown just on the edges or tips. These edges may gradually change from yellow to brown, crispy, and possibly a bit curled.
Browning just on the edges of tips is usually a reaction to low humidity. Since many of our houseplants have tropical origins, they also thrive in humid conditions. Our average indoor humidity is usually adequate, but some plants are simply more sensitive to changes in humidity than others. You may notice this more acutely when conditions are particularly dry—like when you turn on the heater in winter.
Try to accommodate your plant's needs by locating them in more naturally humid places, like the bathroom or kitchen, or grouping a bunch of humidity-loving plants together. But the only way to truly guarantee increased humidity is to get a humidifier!
Once you've addressed the problem: If the brown tips bother you, you can trim them back. Do your best to follow the shape of the leaf to help them look natural. Also, try to cut just short of the discolored edge so it doesn’t expand.
