Great in landscapes and containers and will grow well in sunny and shaded locations. They can also be grown indoors as a houseplant with bright light or in a sunny window.

Caladiums can be an irritant if ingested. The ASPCA has more information on which plants may be harmful.

See our complete guide to caladium care.

Indoors:

Caladiums can be a very nice windowsill or sunroom plant and for much of the United States and certainly in Canada this might be the best use for Caladiums, especially when practicing good caladium houseplant care. Since they are tropical they need to have warmth and humidity, try to always keep the temperatures above 65 F for best growth and leaf size, and a pebble tray or frequent misting can help to keep humidity up around your plants. If you live in a northern climate, be careful not to plant too early in spring as temperatures below 50F will chill and stunt plants, normal indoor temperatures should be fine and winter heaters usually dry things out a bit too much. So this can be a good guide for when to grow these Caladiums, when you turn the heater off for the summer, particularly for Scarlet Flame caladium grown indoors.

Plant tubers pointed end facing upwards, so the tuber is about 2” below the soil level, an important step when planting caladium tubers. The roots form on the top of the tuber, so you need to plant them deep enough that roots have room to grow, but not too deep because it delays new leaves and weakens the plant. If your plants are already growing in pots when you purchase them, plant them about ½” deeper when you transplant them to make sure the tubers have room to keep growing, following best practices for planting caladium tubers.

Caladiums do not need a lot of fertilizer, about ¼ of what most folks feed their flowering annuals, and too much fertilizer can burn the leaves especially the white portions of the leaf. So just fertilize with ¼ the strength what you normally do for your flowers and apply weekly or every other week. This will keep Scarlet Flame caladium looking fresh and vibrant all season long.

Keep plants in a sunny to partly sunny location and avoid burning hot southern exposures especially at higher altitudes, even though it performs as a dependable sun tolerant caladium. Keep soil in your pots moist at all times, wilting will cause leaves to yellow and drop, so just check to make they do not dry out, which is a key part of successful caladium houseplant care!

Outdoors:

Since Caladiums prefer heat and humidity and do not tolerate cold, soggy soils, for most gardeners who live in the north will have best results in containers, as the soil in pots or planters warms up faster and has better drainage so plants will not become soggy. Remember for best growth always keep the temperatures above 65 F. In warmer regions, Scarlet Flame caladium performs beautifully as a sun tolerant caladium in borders, containers and mass plantings.

A ¼ - ½ strength fertilizing every week or every other week is fine throughout the season, too strong a fertilizer can burn leaves, and since the leaves last all season you want to keep them looking fresh. Caladiums like to be moist at all times so avoid allowing them to dry out as it also causes leaves to yellow and drop. Proper watering and drainage are essential whether planting caladium tubers outdoors or growing Scarlet Flame caladium in containers.

Where the Caladiums will do best depends a lot on your location within the US, since sunlight intensity varies depending on where you live. Here’s a quick reference to help guide you to help you succeed.