Glossy red hearts above dark foliage, almost all year round: the anthurium likes it warm and humid, and in return brings colour into the room when everything outside is grey.

What it does for you

The anthurium flowers all year round, and each flower head (inflorescence) lasts several weeks¹. In a commercial growing guide, several cultivars kept flowering for over a year and a half under indoor light². On top of that come dark green leaves with an arrow-shaped base³ – a lovely sight even without flowers.

Origin & history

Anthurium andraeanum grows wild in Colombia and Ecuador⁵ – as a vine-like epiphyte in humid forests at 400 to 1200 metres⁴. It was discovered in 1876 in south-western Colombia; the French botanist Édouard André sent it to Jean Linden's nursery in Belgium⁴.

The anthuriums in shops are mostly interspecific hybrids of A. andraeanum with related species – that's the group this page is about. Leading producers include the Netherlands, Hawaii, Mauritius and Jamaica, both of pot plants and of cut flowers⁴.

Caution

All parts contain calcium oxalate crystals. Chewing on them causes pain and swelling of the mouth, lips and tongue, heavy drooling and difficulty swallowing⁶. Cats and dogs show the same symptoms and vomit, according to the ASPCA's entry for the related Anthurium scherzeranum⁷. The sap irritates skin and eyes – wear gloves when cutting³.

Care

Light. Bright without direct sun, e.g. at a window with morning or evening sun or behind a net curtain at a sunny window; harsh sun scorches the leaves¹. If it's too dark, it makes lots of leaves but hardly any flowers².

Water. Water when the soil is almost dry five centimetres down – ideally with rainwater or filtered water at room temperature. Too much water makes the roots rot¹. Water more sparingly in winter³. As a rule of thumb, that means about once a week in summer.

Temperature & humidity. 18–30 °C all year, away from radiators and cold draughts¹. Below 13 °C it gets damaged². If the air is too dry, the leaves turn brown – a tray of damp gravel or neighbouring plants help¹.

Soil, pot & repotting. Acidic and free-draining: two parts peat-free ericaceous compost, one part each of perlite and orchid bark. Repot every two to three years into a pot only slightly bigger¹.

Feeding. From spring to mid-autumn regularly with orchid fertiliser¹, about every two weeks³. Too much fertiliser turns the lower leaves yellow with brown tips².

Extras

Over 600 cultivars are available today, with bracts in red, pink, orange, coral, white, green, purple or brown, some two-coloured⁴. Simply cut spent flower stalks and old leaves off at the base¹.