Calathea timothei
A large, high-altitude Calathea from the western Andes of Colombia (and reportedly Ecuador), reaching 2–3 m, with long glossy green leaves, red-flushed petioles and veins beneath, and unusual spirally arranged, intense red bracts around small yellow flowers. Herbarium labels place it in wet montane forest understory at about 1,600–2,500 m, so unlike most calatheas it wants cool, very humid, shaded conditions rather than lowland heat. Very little has been written about it in cultivation.
Where it grows wild
Understory and forest edges of wet montane cloud forest on the Pacific-facing western Cordillera of Colombia. Herbarium labels near Cali read 'sotobosque húmedo' (wet understory); observations around Tatamá National Park note forest edge at about 2,400 m.
Georeferenced GBIF records span roughly 1,600–2,500 m (herbarium specimens near Cali at 1,600–1,959 m; observations near Tatamá at 2,300–2,500 m). It is described in the literature as a high-altitude Calathea.
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More Calathea
Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.