Species · genus Goeppertia · Marantaceae

Calathea Orbifolia

Goeppertia orbifolia (Linden) Borchs. & S.Suárez

Also known as: Round-Leaf Calathea · Prayer Plant

Growth habit

perennial

Native range

Brazil Northeast, Brazil Southeast

Reference · G. orbifolia

Cultivars of G. orbifolia

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under G. orbifolia yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

A tropical understory perennial from the Brazilian forests, grown for its rounded, silver-banded foliage. It wants warmth, even moisture, and bright indirect light — direct sun scorches its leaves. Water when the top inch of mix is dry, easing toward dry between waterings rather than keeping it soggy.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 10 days

Humidity

High

Temperature

18–27 °C

Soil mix

Airy, moisture-retentive mix of peat/coir with perlite

Propagation

Division of the rootball at repotting

Fertilizing

Diluted balanced feed monthly through the growing season

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Rarely flowers indoors; grown for its large striped leaves

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Non-toxic to cats & dogs

Prayer-plant family (Marantaceae). ASPCA lists Calathea insignis (= Goeppertia insignis) non-toxic; the genus is uniformly safe. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Calathea Orbifolia yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.