Calatheas
Used to growing at the base of trees in South America’s thick jungles, Calathea thrives in shade and high humidity. They developed a unique strategy to prosper in the understory. Every evening, the brightly striped leaves fold inward toward the plant’s center, conserving water with a motion reminiscent of nightly prayers and displaying the velvety maroon undersides. They reopen each morning, allowing the plant to catch more of the sun filtering through the trees.