Complete Care Guide: Stromanthe Triostar
Complete Care Guide: Stromanthe Triostar
In this article, you'll find…
Plant Info
Care Guide
Lighting
Watering
Humidity
Soil Needs
Types
Propagating
Common Issues
Frequently Asked Questions
Plant Info
The Stromanthe Triostar is a wonderfully-vibrant cultivar (cultivated variety) of Stromanthe sanguinea, in the prayer plant family.
Quick note: Marantaceae is called the 'prayer plant family' (and the individual species are called 'prayer plants') because of a phenomenon called nyctinasty, where in response to nighttime, prayer plants will fold their leaves up (to varying degrees), "as if in prayer". Nothing to do with religion, as some assume! The most commonly-known prayer plants are likely either Calatheas or Marantas -- the latter of which includes the arrowroot!
Back to the Triostar: dark green, oblong leaves are painted with chunks of creamy white or off-white, sometimes covering most of the leaf; the undersides are a rich red wine colour, which can sometimes be seen through the leaf with enough light, giving the creamy variegation a pink undertone. It's a bunching plant, frequently sending up new stems, which grow like swizzle sticks, in a tightly-rolled cylinder, before they fully unfurl in all their glory.
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Common Name(s) |
Stromanthe Triostar, Stromanthe Tricolor, Calathea Triostar |
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Botanical Name |
Stromanthe sanguinea 'Tricolor' |
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Botanical Family |
Marantaceae, the prayer plant family |
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Mature Size |
Medium - can grow up to 3' wide/tall with the right care! |
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Lighting |
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Watering |
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Humidity |
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Soil Mix |
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Flowers |
Rare; small, white flowers often held under the leaves |
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Hardiness |
Tropical; keep above 10C/50F. |
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Native Region |
Stromanthe sanguinea is from the Brazilian Amazon! |
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Toxicity |
Completely safe for ingestion (by pets and people, though I wouldn't suggest tasting it) |
Take a look at this care guide as an infographic!
Care Guide
Stromanthe Triostar has a bit of a reputation as a diva -- as all prayer plants do -- but I've personally found it to be among the hardiest of all my prayer plants, able to withstand drying out a lot more than most, and even better than some of my "medium watering needs" plants, in a pinch. It's bright, cheery, and very in-your-face in the best way.
And yes, if you caught it in the above table -- the botanical name is not a typo! Despite the common name being 'Triostar', the officially-registered cultivar name is 'Tricolor'! This has led to 'Tricolor' being an occasional common name that's used. I've also seen it listed as 'Calathea Triostar', though, which is just plain incorrect.
Lighting
Medium-bright lighting is best for your Triostar! Brighter light will mean more creamy variegation, bigger leaves, and faster growth; too bright light, however, will dry out your plant way too quickly, and will leave the leaves nice and crispy. For the best-looking plant, it's best to find that sweet spot -- not quite bright indirect light, but medium-bright.
Make sure to check out our general article on lighting!
Watering
This is why prayer plants are considered divas... their watering needs. Prayer plants, including the Triostar, must be kept consistently moist. Letting them dry out -- sometimes practically at all -- will mean brown, crispy edges on your leaves (or just brown and crispy leaves, depending)!
That having been said, the Triostar is one of the most forgiving prayer plants, and can withstand drying out for a couple days past when it's thirsty. You still might see some brown edges -- it happens to all of us -- but you're less likely to lose the entire plant.
Also, there's a handy visual cue for when it's really getting thirsty, and your time is running out -- the leaves will curl up, forming little tacos instead of flat leaves! That's a good sign to break out the watering can, and to water a little bit sooner next time.
Make sure to check out our general article on watering!
Humidity
If watering is the reason Triostars are considered divas, then humidity is the key to bringing them down to earth a little bit. High humidity means that you won't need to water nearly as often, because water isn't able to evaporate from the soil or the stomata (or leaf-pores) as quickly. This means that you're far less likely to see dead leaves or even browning edges, if your Triostar is kept in high humidity. Keep it near a humidifier if possible, or group it with other plants to create a humid microclimate.
Make sure to check out our general article on humidity – including a couple common myths!
Soil Needs
Stromanthes are found on the rainforest floor, and unlike many common houseplants, are not epiphytic -- they're terrestrial, like we normally think of plants! This means that we don't need to add as much chunkiness to the soil -- some is always a good thing, since it aerates the soil for the roots, but you don't need as much, since their roots are adapted to the soil. As well, you want it to drain well enough that the roots aren't waterlogged, but retain a good amount of moisture, so that you don't need to water as often!
Suggestion: Start with 2 part peat-based potting mix of coco coir, and then add 1 part of perlite or vermiculite.
Don't know why you're adding these things? Check out our article on potting mixes!
Types
Stromanthe Triostar's unvariegated form, Stromanthe sanguinea, is also a relatively easily-found houseplant! They're the same plant, except the Sanguinea doesn't have creamy variegation on the tops of the leaves.
Propagating
Unfortunately, you can't propagate a Triostar by cutting a piece off -- at least, not easily! The reason for this is that the stems are actually underground, called rhizomes, that shoot up leaves every so often, so taking a cutting of a leaf doesn't leave you with the right tissues to grow anything!
The easiest way to create new plants is division. To do this, simply carefully remove the dirt from around the roots of the plant, and separate the clumps. You may need to use a sharp, clean knife to cut the clusters of leaves apart (which is, technically, taking a cutting).
Arguably, you could separate each and every leaf into its own chunk of rhizome, and grow more plants that way -- which is actually how they're generally propagated commercially!
Common Issues
The biggest issue is always, always underwatering, though you need to be careful of overwatering as well!
All houseplants are susceptible to pests, including mealybugs, spider mites, and more... but the wonderful Marantaceae have a particular affinity for spider mites. Check regularly -- it can feel like they spawn them sometimes. Look under the leaves for black, red, or white dots, and check the bottoms of the leaves for webbing.
Frequently Asked Questions
I got a leaf that came in all white. Is this a bad thing?
Not really. It does mean that you can move it to a slightly lower-light position, and you'll be able to water it slightly less, though -- so it can be a warning sign of potential future crispiness, in a way.
If all the leaves come in all-white, that's a problematic thing. All-white leaves don't contribute any significant energy to the plant (since they lack chlorophyll, the main photosynthesizing chemical -- there are some other photosynthesizing chemicals, but chlorophyll is the main one, and the less green a leaf has, the less chlorophyll)! So a plant that keeps producing all-white leaves can eventually die from a sheer lack of energy... but this is uncommon, since the basal leaves will still have green in them, and those will still produce energy. You'd have to have a LOT of all-white leaves to create a problem.
Does my Triostar need distilled water?
In a word: no... with possible, limited exceptions.
Prayer plants as a whole have a particularly bad rap as far as water quality goes, with many people suggesting that you only water them with distilled water, RO water, or rain water. This is only necessary for carnivorous plants, which will eventually die from too many nutrients in tap water.
Often, this is blamed on the chlorine in tap water -- people say that it causes the crispy brown edges. Chlorine does not do this at levels found in tap water. If your tap water is considered safe for you to drink, then it's safe for all plants, as far as chlorine levels go; the chlorine levels would need to be multiple times any legal limit in order to harm your plants. Since the chlorine is not dangerous, you also don't need to leave tap water out overnight (which likely does nothing anyway)!
If you're experiencing crispy brown edges, odds are very good that you're underwatering, the humidity is too low, or both. Don't bother changing the water -- nurseries and botanical gardens use tap water, and their plants are always lush (since they have experts tending to them in near-ideal conditions). It's a myth.