How to Grow and Care for Pinstripe Calathea

Goeppertia ornata (aka Calathea ornata)

While some prayer plants are known for their almost outlandishly patterned leaves, the pinstripe plant has a quieter beauty that’s subdued and elegant.

Goeppertia ornata, formerly known as Calathea ornata, makes an excellent foliage houseplant that will blend with many different styles of decor.

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It’s also easy to take care of once you have a good understanding of its needs – and that’s exactly what we’re going to cover in this article!

But before we get started, if you’re looking for general care guidance for all sorts of prayer plants, be sure to read our guide.

Here’s what we’ll go over:

G. ornata is an evergreen, herbaceous perennial that has smooth, oblong, and slightly asymmetrical leaves with smooth margins.

The leaves are dark green and patterned with delicate, wispy stripes ranging from cream to pink.

One cultivar, ‘Beauty Star,’ has the additional feature of a pale green background between the midrib and the margins of the leaves, which makes its stripes stand out more prominently.

The underside of each leaf is deep purple.

G. ornata grows to be two to three feet tall by two to three feet wide and has a fountain-like growth habit, with stems supporting just one leaf each.

It grows from rhizomes, forming new clumps as it matures.

Spikes of small white or pink flowers may appear in summer, though this is rare with houseplants.

The pinstripe plant is a type of prayer plant and it exhibits the same “praying” movements with its leaves as its relatives, lifting them at night, and lowering them again after sunrise.

The common names “pinstripe plant” or “pinstripe calathea” are also sometimes used for other Goeppertia species, such as G. elliptica, which bears white stripes on its leaves.

This member of the Marantaceae family is closely related to other well-loved prayer plants such as network calathea, peacock calathea, and red-veined maranta.

You can learn more about these species and others in our roundup of the most stunning species of prayer plants to grow at home.

This species is referred to as Calathea ornata more often than it is by its official botanical name G. ornata.

The bulk of the calatheas were reclassified in 2012, and popular culture hasn’t quite caught up with science yet.

This species is also sometimes called Maranta ornata, Phyllodes ornata, Phrynium ornatum, and Maranta coriifolium, all of which are previous taxonomic classifications.

This calathea can only be grown outdoors year-round in USDA Hardiness Zones 12 and up.

Pinstripe calathea makes a beautifully subdued foliage plant that can complement other houseplants with brighter foliage such as arrowhead vine, Chinese evergreen, or nerve plant when used in a grouping.

Calatheas are nontoxic, making them excellent plants for homes with children and pets.

How to Grow

It’s not terribly difficult to keep pinstripe calatheas happy, as long as you provide them with what they’ll need to meet their basic requirements.

Here’s what you need to know:

Choosing a Plant

If you want to avoid the frustrations of pests, disease, and failing floral companions, be sure to start with a healthy specimen.

Avoid specimens that have browning or yellowing leaves and look for signs of pests. You’ll learn more about inspecting this calathea for pests and diseases later in this article, so keep reading!

Light

Pinstripe calathea will thrive best in medium, indirect light.

It can also adapt to low, indirect light but be careful of direct sun which will cause this plant a great deal of stress.

A little direct sun in the morning is well tolerated, but avoid hot midday or afternoon sun exposure.

Temperature

Soil

Members of the Marantaceae family require a rich, peaty growing medium to stay hydrated. However, they also require excellent drainage.

G. ornata tolerates soils that are slightly acidic to slightly alkaline, with a pH ranging from 6.1 to 7.8.

And since prayer plants are prone to brown tips, it’s best to avoid growing mediums that include perlite, since the fluoride content in this common ingredient can cause tip burn.

My preferred peat-free potting mix for these plants is actually a combo – I like to mix one part coconut coir to help retain moisture with one part De La Tank’s Houseplant Soil Mix.

This provides good drainage as well as ingredients that will promote healthy growth, such as compost, biochar, and humic acid.

De La Tank’s Soil Mix

You’ll find De La Tank’s Soil Mix in one-, eight-, or 16-quart bags from Arbico Organics.

If you don’t already have a supply of coconut coir (also known as cocopeat) on hand for gardening use, you can purchase it in a compressed block, which makes it more space efficient.

Prococo Compressed Coconut Coir Block

You can find 10-pound blocks of compressed coconut coir also available from Arbico Organics.

Water

G. ornata prefers moist soil, so don’t let it dry out much between waterings. I like to water my prayer plants when the surface of the soil has just barely started to dry.

Use a houseplant watering can to evenly hydrate the surface of the soil, watering until liquid runs out of the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot.

Wait until the water has finished draining before returning it to its decorative pot or placing it back on top of the drainage saucer.

You might also want to try the bottom watering method for this plant.

Humidity

Prayer plants require higher than average humidity, and pinstripe calathea is no different.

Aim for humidity that is between 40 and 60 percent. If you live in a climate with humid summers, you should be all set and won’t need to add any more moisture to your air.

During wintertime and for those of us in more arid climates, a few extra measures can help.

I grow humidity-loving houseplants such as pinstripe calathea in my arid climate by keeping them grouped with buddies, and placed in terrariums.

The houseplant buddies help to raise the ambient humidity, and the terrarium helps to hold the moisture in. (It also helps to protect my plants from my curious cats.)

Fertilizing

Prayer plants prefer a gentle fertilizing regimen, so I like to use worm compost tea to nourish them.

If you don’t have worm compost bins of your own (yet!), you can fertilize your houseplant using worm compost tea sachets.

To use this method, you soak these “tea” bags in room temperature water and feed your plants while watering.

Teadrops All Purpose Houseplant Fertilizer

You can find organic worm compost tea sachets from Earthworm Technologies via Walmart.

Where to Buy

You can find pinstripe plants in nurseries and garden centers that carry a good selection of houseplants.

Or you can shop online!

Pinstripe Plant

You can find pinstripe plants in six-inch pots from Fast Growing Trees.

Beauty Star

‘Beauty Star’ is a cultivated variety of G. ornata.

Its dark green leaves have flushes of pale green between the midrib and leaf margins, forming a light green background behind delicate creamy pink stripes.

The stripes appear in a wispy, feathery pattern and the undersides of the leaves are deep purple.

This cultivar tends to grow only up to 18 inches tall and wide, with pink flowers.

‘Beauty Star’

You can purchase ‘Beauty Star’ in six-inch pots from the American Plant Exchange via Amazon.

Maintenance

You’ll only need to prune your pinstripe calathea if you want to shape it up a bit or if it gets the occasional brown leaf tip.

Like other prayer plants, G. ornata is quite sensitive to temperature and humidity fluctuations and it’s not uncommon to find brown leaf tips, even on well-cared for specimens.

Feel free to prune off brown tips with a pair of sterilized scissors. You can wipe the scissors down with rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide to sterilize them.

If you get quite neglectful and miss a watering or two, you might find entire leaves that have gone crispy.

Trim back the dead leaf as close as possible to the soil surface.

There are many causes for brown leaves on prayer plants – learn how to troubleshoot this issue in our guide.

When it’s time to water, this is a good opportunity to give its leaves a quick cleaning.

Wipe each leaf down with a damp paper towel, top and bottom, and make sure the leaves remain relatively dry.

As a fairly slow grower, pinstripe calathea will only need to be repotted every two or three years – do this in spring when it is actively growing.

Remove the plant from the current pot, gently loosen the outer roots by rubbing your hand along the edge of the root ball.

Put a little soil in the bottom of the new pot, center your plant, and adjust it so the top of the soil is about half an inch from the rim of the pot.

Fill in with potting medium and then water well.

Propagation

Calathea seeds are hard to come by and tricky to propagate, so your best option for propagating pinstripe calathea is via division.

It’s best to divide in the spring when your plant is putting on new growth.

Remove the plant and inspect where stems emerge from the soil. If you see separate clumps, you have rhizomes that can be divided.

Each clump should have at least three leaves for best results.

Prepare your potting supplies, remove the plant from its pot, and gently separate the clumps. Then follow the potting instructions from the repotting section above.

Pests and Disease

G. ornata and its prayer plant relatives tend to be spared problems with pests and diseases, so it’s not very likely you will have to deal with these issues.

Pests

Insects and other pests might set up camp on your houseplant while summering outdoors, or they might hitchhike in on a newly acquired specimen.

Here are some of the most common pests to target these houseplants:

Mealybugs

From a distance, mealybugs look like tiny bits of white fluff, usually on stems and the undersides of leaves, feeding on your plant, leaving it undernourished and weak.

As they feed, they leave behind sticky honeydew, which can allow fungal pathogens to thrive.

You can learn more about controlling a mealybug infestation here.

Scale

There are many different types of scale. To learn more about identifying them and controlling infestations, read our complete guide to fighting scale insects.

Spider Mites

Spider mites are common houseplant pests.

Relatives of mites and ticks, these tiny arachnids can cause stippled leaves and if the infestation is bad enough, they will also drape foliage in webbing.

To learn more about these pests, be sure to read our article on detecting and controlling spider mite infestations.

Disease

Disease is not often an issue with calatheas, but it’s good to know what to be on the lookout for. Here are some of the diseases you are most likely to encounter in these houseplants:

Cucumber Mosaic Virus

Strange yellow mosaic-like patterns on your calathea may indicate cucumber mosaic virus, which causes cosmetic damage but won’t kill the plant.

Since there’s no treatment, prevention is important so be sure to wash your hands and sanitize tools before handling your calathea.

While not life-threatening, disposing of infected plants is the only way to prevent the disease from spreading to other houseplants.

Helminthosporium Leaf Spot

Helminthosporium leaf spot shows up as brown or tan lesions surrounded by yellow halos on the foliage.

This disease is caused by various fungal organisms and the lesions on leaves grow larger over time.

Prevention is the best approach, so avoid placing your houseplant in damp, cool conditions, which will allow these fungi to thrive.

If it’s too late and you discover an existing infection, you can treat with neem oil, a natural and nontoxic fungicide.

Bonide Neem Oil

You can find Bonide Neem Oil available at Arbico Organics.

Neem oil is usually diluted before applying, so be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions when using this product.

Root Rot

Yellow leaves on a well-watered plant often signal root rot, a disease caused by pathogens like fungi and oomycetes in overly wet soil.

Prevent it by using appropriately sized pots with drainage holes, well-draining soil, and watering until moist but not soggy. Never leave plants in standing water.

If you suspect root rot, remove the plant and inspect the roots. Healthy roots are firm and white or cream-colored, while rotten roots are dark and mushy.

Using sterilized pruners, cut away damaged roots and repot in fresh, well-draining soil and a smaller pot if needed.

While root rot is one cause of yellow leaves in G. ornata, there are other causes too. Read our article on troubleshooting yellow leaves on prayer plants to learn more.

Learn more about root rot here.

A Delicate and Ornate Beauty

Now that you know all about the pinstripe plant’s needs, you should be ready to keep your houseplant healthy and happy.

But if you run into any problems, let us know in the comments section below and we’ll do what we can to help!

And by the way, which pinstripe plant do you have? G. ornata, ‘Beauty Star,’ or something else entirely? Feel free to share your pics in the comments section too.

If you’re ready to learn about some other fabulous prayer plants, check out these guides next:

• How to Grow and Care for Rattlesnake Plant Indoors
• How to Grow Stromanthe Triostar Houseplants
• Worth Its Stripes: How to Grow and Care for Calathea Zebrina Plants