House Plant Index
CALADIUM
Caladium bicolor
| Flowers |
Seldom in the house |
| Potting or re-potting time |
As often as rootbound |
| Position in garden during summer |
Rest in cellar May to Aug |
| Potting Mixture |
Start in 2, shift to 3 |
Caladium is a tropical American, tuberous-rooted aroid (grown extensively for its highly colored foliage, both as a summer bedding plant and in the house.
Tubers should be started in August, in chopped moss or osmunda. When roots have started, shift tuber to a pot containing mixture 2. As soon as top growth becomes active transfer to a larger pot of mixture 3. The plant is a rapid grower and will probably require several transplanting into increasingly larger pots, but keep it justs on the verge of becoming rootbound. If you wish to keep the tubers for another year, rest them from May to August in a cool cellar a cover them with dry peat moss.
Leaves of C.bicolor are ovalish or shaped like arrowheads. They are bluish-green, overlaid with patterns of different colors, and have long stalks. Numerous hybrids and horticultural varieties offer a wide range of leaf col and pattern.
Caladium needs light but direct sun will bum the leaves. It also requires a warm and moist location. |
