Calathea Flame Star

Common Name:
Flame Star Calathea

Description:
Calathea ‘Flame Star’ is a vibrant tropical houseplant known for its bold, decorative foliage. It features large, broad leaves with a bright lime to yellow-green centre and contrasting dark green borders, often with a subtle flame-like pattern that gives the plant its name. Like other members of the Marantaceae family, Flame Star is a “prayer plant”, with leaves that fold upward in the evening and open again in the morning. This rhythmic movement adds a dynamic element to its already dramatic look. Native to the humid understories of South American rainforests, Flame Star thrives indoors in Melbourne where it enjoys warm temperatures, high humidity, and bright but indirect light. The plant prefers consistently moist, well-drained soil and benefits from regular misting, especially in dry indoor air. Although it may rarely flower indoors, its real appeal lies in its colourful, lush foliage that adds life and energy to indoor spaces.

Form:

• Shrub - Clumping / Grass-like / Mounding

• Shrub - Small

• Indoor Foliage Plant

Mature Size:

• Height: 30–50 cm

• Width: 30–50 cm

Aspect:

• Part Shade

• Full Shade

• Indoors / Well lit

Flowering:

• Flowers in Summer (rare indoors)

• Does not flower under Melbourne's weather conditions

Flower Colour:

• White (small and insignificant if produced)

Key Attributes:

• Suitable for Pots

• Suitable for Indoors

• Perennial

• Non-toxic

• Air-purifying qualities

• Low Light Tolerant

• Decorative Foliage

• Excellent for Humid Spaces

Toxicity:

• Non-toxic to humans

• Non-toxic to cats and dogs

Companion Plants:

• Calathea ‘Medallion’

• Ctenanthe burle-marxii

• Maranta leuconeura

• Peperomia obtusifolia

• Spathiphyllum ‘Domino’