Species library › Marcgravia › Marcgravia serrae
Terrarium Partly documented

Marcgravia serrae

Marcgravia serrae, described by de Roon in 1969, is a cloud-forest root-climbing vine of the Costa Rican and Panamanian highlands, most often collected between 1400 and 2000 m in the Talamanca and Tilaran ranges and around Chiriqui. Wild days are only 19-22 C and nights 13-15 C in near-constant mist, so it belongs in a cool, wet terrarium rather than a heated one.

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 periodClimber

Where it grows wild

Montane cloud forest, climbing moss-laden trunks and branches in deep shade under persistent cloud. Like the rest of the genus it is a root-climbing hemiepiphytic vine with two shoot forms: juvenile climbing shoots press small shingle leaves flat to bark or rock, and only mature free-hanging shoots carry the larger leaves and the pendent umbel with nectar-cup bracts. Growers keep it in the juvenile shingling stage on a damp vertical surface.

Records span 425-2313 m with a median of 1700 m; it is a highland species.

Costa RicaPanama

🔒 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.