Species library › Calathea › Calathea carlae

Calathea carlae

Calathea carlae is a premontane Calathea of Costa Rica and western Panama, described by Helen Kennedy in 2011. It is recorded at 750–1350 m in very wet forest. It needs intermediate temperatures, constant moisture and high humidity.

At home, aim for

Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Very humid airBand in Plantistry

Light ShadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

No rest periodGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Like other Calathea in the strict sense (the bracted, mostly Central and South American group that stayed in Calathea when Goeppertia was split off), it is a clump-forming terrestrial herb of wet forest. No habitat notes specific to the species were reachable. The records, clustered at 1100–1350 m in a very wet climate, point to premontane rainforest understory.

The 30 records with an elevation run from 750 to 1350 m, with a median of 1200 m.

Costa RicaPanamá

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.