Your Calathea plant is something that you really enjoy having around and you want to make sure that you’re taking care of it right. This is a fun plant to care for and many people like keeping them indoors.
They’ve become one of the more common houseplants that you will encounter, but some have noted concerns about seeing their Calathea plants start to droop.
If your Calathea begins drooping, does this mean that it’s dying? You might start panicking when you see this happen and this is especially worrying if you’ve never had a plant that you’re caring for do something like this.
This actually isn’t a huge cause for concern and you just need to take a step back so that you can learn why this happens.
Calathea Plants Have Very Expressive Leaves
It has been said that Calathea plants have incredibly expressive leaves and they’re going to tell you when they need to be watered.
When you notice your Calathea plant drooping, it’s just telling you that it needs to be watered soon and that you need to pay attention. This doesn’t mean that your plant is dying or that something else very bad is happening.
Generally, when your Calathea is thirsty, its leaves are going to roll up a bit and this is your sign that it needs water. When you notice this, it’s going to be good to check the soil and then give it some water if it indeed needs some.
Checking the soil first is highly recommended because you can also mistake the natural movement of the Calathea plant for slight drooping and you don’t want to water the plant too much.
Checking the soil allows you to see if it is dry or not so that you can make sure of things. If the soil is dry, you need to go ahead and give your Calathea some water.
When the soil is still damp, it’s going to be best to move on with your day and check on your plant again the next day.
The good thing to know about drooping Calathea leaves is that they will go away very fast. Even if you are underwatering them, these plants are pretty resilient and can bounce back after getting watered again.
If you were anxious about the drooping leaves and thought that you made a major mistake, this should allow you to breathe a sigh of relief.
What About Yellowing?
Yellowing leaves can also be a sign that your Calathea plant isn’t getting enough water. If you notice that the leaves on your plant have started to yellow a bit, you should try to pay more attention to how you’re watering it.
Yellowing leaves and browning leaves can also be signs of watering a plant too much and you have to find the right balance to get things right.
How Moist Should Calathea Soil Be?
Another question that people have is about how moist the soil in your Calathea’s pot should be. You might be used to letting your other houseplants get completely dry before you give them more water, but things might be slightly different for Calathea plants.
You see, Calathea plants like the soil to be moist at all times so that they can thrive.
This doesn’t mean that you need to water your plant every single day, though. To get the best results, you should water your Calathea when the top one or two inches of the soil is dry.
It can remain moist as you go deeper than that, but you’ll know that you don’t need to water the plant until the top two inches of soil have become dry.
Aerate the Soil
If you want to do the best job possible when taking care of a Calathea plant, you should think about aerating the soil. This is going to help your houseplants to thrive and it’s something that you need to do every so often.
In nature, worms are going to help provide soil aeration, but this isn’t going to be possible when you’re taking care of houseplants.
Luckily, soil aeration is an easy process and you just need to shift the soil around a bit and break up clumps. What this does is it allows your plants to enjoy more even moisture distribution when you’re watering them.
Also, it helps to ensure that airflow is going to the roots properly, which improves the health of your plants.
If you want to take steps to improve your Calathea’s situation, soil aeration is a must. This can help your plant out if you want it to spring back from not receiving as much water as it should have.
Soil aeration combined with proper watering can make a huge difference.
Watch Out for Air Drafts
Calathea plants can be quite susceptible to air drafts as well. Hot and cold air drafts can have a negative impact on these plants and you’ll want to position them in your home accordingly.
If you are using air conditioners or heaters in your home, you’ll want to be careful about not getting your Calathea plant too close to vents or air conditioning units.
Ideally, your Calathea plant should be placed in an environment that stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. When the temperature in your home drops more than 10 degrees at night, it can wind up shocking your plant.
Try to do what you can to minimize this to keep your plant from encountering issues.
Care for Your Calathea
Knowing more about Calathea plants should make it simpler to care for one. You now know that drooping leaves won’t necessarily be a bad thing and that Calathea plants are simply expressive.
It is imperative to be careful about how much you’re watering these plants, though, and paying attention to soil moisture makes a huge difference.
You can also solve Calathea issues by being good about aerating the soil in the pot and being careful about temperature issues. So long as you’re being a proactive plant owner, it should be easy to take care of a plant like this.

Growing up with a mom who filled her home (inside and out) with all sorts of plants, Lisa got her start in gardening at a young age. Living now on her own with a home and yard full of plants (including an indoor greenhouse), she shares all the gardening tips she’s gained over the years.