I'm going to talk to you here about how to properly care for your caladium for the summer season and how to take care of it in the fall and winter.
The caladium stands out for the beauty of its foliage. It is also nicknamed angel wings due to the shape and delicacy of its leaves. The leaves often have beautiful bright colors. You can currently find it in almost every nursery, and it's a plant that is also sold to be placed outside on balconies and patios.
As for me, I like to keep my caladium inside the house.
Caring for the Caladium
A good bright light, it tolerates direct sunlight very well, but maybe not from a south-facing window as that might be too much. Morning or late afternoon sun is ideal. I recommend letting the soil dry only on the surface and ensuring to keep its soil slightly moist at all times. It's a plant that grows very quickly. It will produce large leaves almost every week. I advise feeding it with fertilizer at least once a month during the summer season. Personally, I give it fertilizer almost every week at the moment.
The Caladium and Its Dormancy Period
The caladium is a plant that goes into deep dormancy in the fall, around early November. What do I mean by that? It dies. Well, you'll think it's dying. You'll probably panic a little bit. That's exactly why I'm writing this article. To tell you: calm down Sylvie, your caladium will come back, in the spring.
So around November your caladium will lose its vigor, stop producing leaves, and all its leaves will eventually wither. That's the time to cut it down to the ground. I know, it's a bit scary. But that's it. So you cut it down, and then what should you do? You have 2 options:
You can leave it in its pot and simply store it in a closet all winter, without watering it. Forget it, dry, alone in the coolness of your closet.
You can also take it out of the soil and collect its bulbs, wrap them in newspaper, and store them until spring.
What to Do with Our Deceased Caladium in the Spring?
I recommend repotting your caladium in fresh soil, placing the bulbs in the middle and not all the way at the bottom. Then, resume watering as usual and place it in the sun, on the windowsill is ideal. I had placed it in a south-facing window. You can also cover the pot with plastic wrap to create a kind of mini greenhouse. To help retain moisture. Be careful though, as it may cause mold if you've overwatered.
Then, Arm Yourself with Patience.
From my experience this year, I brought my caladium out of dormancy at the beginning of March, when the days were sunnier and longer. (Okay, I know March is technically still winter, but in my defense, my plants start coming out of dormancy around that time.) It only started growing in early May. However, I had to repot it and raise its bulbs to the middle of the pot because they were too deep and struggled to regrow. I had also overwatered a bit, so one bulb had rotted. In early May, I finally saw new shoots emerging. It's really rewarding! In just 4 weeks, it is now magnificent with over a dozen leaves already.
