How to care for and grow your Triostar
Native to: Brazil
Watering needs: Frequent – keep soil moist
Lighting needs: Lots of bright indirect
Difficulty: Green thumbs
Great for: Adding color, experienced planters
Pet-Safe: Yes
Picking The Right Spot
(Lighting, Air Conditioning, Temperature)
Caring For Your Triostar
(Watering, Dusting, Re-potting)
How do I choose a healthy Triostar?
Let's pick a Triostar.
It’s Alright If You See:
1. No Flowers: While flowers are possible in spring if kept outdoors, that only applies to places with a climate cooler than the UAE. Here, keep it indoors and give your attention to its magnificent leaves.
But, Watch Out For:
1. Root-rot: This will require re-potting.
Where do I place my Triostar?
(Lighting, Air Conditioning, Temperature)
Half of plant parenthood is choosing the perfect spot.
Lighting
For fast & colorful growth, place your Triostar as close to the window as you can, with the widest possible view of the sky.
However, avoid more than 1 hour of direct sunlight.
Air Conditioning
Place your Triostar as far away from the direct air escaping your AC vent as possible. If too close, the dry air may cause its leaves to curl.
Temperature
Like most houseplants, Triostars are happiest between 18 °C – 27 °C. As a general rule: if you're comfortable, then your Triostar probably is too.
How do I care for my Triostar
(Watering, Dusting, Re-potting)
How to keep your plant alive (and also show your love).
Watering
Keep soil moist
Triostars like their like their soil to stay moist (though never wet). To check if your Triostar is ready to be watered, use your finger to feel about one inch of the soil (as deep as your nail). If you feel ANY moisture, then wait longer! If it feels completely dry, then it's time to rewater your plant: Slowly water the soil so that it's completely saturated - you'll know it's fully saturated when water drips out the drainage holes at the bottom of the nursery pot.
The more light your plant gets, the more you'll need to water it. Similarly, the less light it gets, the less it will need.
Note: When checking your soil for moisture, make sure to test different parts of the soil, in case you come across a wet pocket.
Dusting
Once a month, gently wipe away any dust on your plant.
Wiping your Triostar free of dust with a damp rag once a month will help it soak in light and breathe through the little pores on its leaves (stomata).
Re-potting
Leave it in its nursery pot
Leave your Triostar in its nursery pot for at least one year before repotting it. It’s perfectly happy in it!
Time to re-pot
When re-potting, use a high-quality potting mix and transfer your Triostar into a pot that's about 1–2 inches in diameter larger than its current one (or one or two sizes up).
Whatever you do, avoid a bag of pure peat moss. This is what you’ll get in most bags that say “potting soil” or “gardening soil”. When in doubt, reach out to our team at hello@plntd.ae, and we’ll help you identify whether the soil bag you’re considering will work for your Triostar.
Remember, always go for a pot with drainage holes.
Pro-tip: To keep watering simple and easy, you can simply re-pot your Triostar into a larger nursery pot and place that nursery pot in a larger planter.
Frequently asked questions about Triostar
Ask away, grasshopper.
How easy is a Triostar to care for?
Triostars require a little more care than the average indoor plant:
- They like their soil to remain moist (though never soggy) and so need to be watered every 1-2 weeks. The more light they get, the more you can expect to water them.
- These plants are native to the humid rainforest floors of Brazil and love high humidity; something to combat with the dry AC air so common in the UAE. As a result, they need to be misted with water regularly to help retain their moisture (once a day is at least!).
Like most indoor plants, Triostars are a little sensitive when it comes to the chlorine and calcium found in UAE tap water, however. To combat this, make sure to:
- Leave tap water out for 24-48 hrs before using it. This will allow the chlorine time to evaporate.
- Water all the way through the soil until water is dripping out the bottom of the nursery pot. This will ensure any excess build of calcium (and other minerals) is flushed out from the soil.
If you see browning forming along the edges/tips of your Triostar and you're confident about your watering and humidity levels, then you may need to change up your source of water.
How much light does my Triostar need?
Triostars are native to the rainforest floors of Brazil and have evolved to grow in the shade, under the canopies of tall trees.
Your Triostar will survive in similar medium-light conditions. However, as with all indoor plants, the more bright INDIRECT light it gets, the faster it will grow and the bigger its leaves will get.
Practically, this means giving your Triostar the largest view of the sky as possible.
The only rule is to be sure to keep it away from bright DIRECT sunlight (i.e. do not place it by a bright window that gets lots of direct sunlight a day). The direct sunlight will fade away the color of your plant's leaves.
It will also stress your plant out so much that it would commit its energy and water reserves to regulating its temperature to simply just survive (as opposed to grow and thrive).
Can I use UAE tap water to water my Triostar?
Yes. Triostars can be fed using UAE tap water.
However, like most indoor plants, they are sensitive to the chlorine and calcium found in the water.
To combat this, make sure to:
- Leave tap water out for 24-48 hours before using it. This will allow the chlorine time to evaporate.
- When watering your Triostar, make sure to water through the soil until it is dripping out the bottom of the nursery pot. This flushes out any excess build-up of calcium (and other minerals) from the soil.
Finally, look out for tell-tale signs of too much chlorine or calcium:
- Scorched brown tips at the leaves = too much chlorine.
- White crystals on the soil = too much calcium.
Will AC harm my Triostar Plant? What temperature should I set it to?
Triostar Plants are tropical plants native to the warm, humid, climate of Brazil.
ACs achieve the opposite results: they make the temperature colder, and the air dryer.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when setting your AC temperature and deciding where to place your Triostar in a room:
- The ideal temperature for a Triostar, as with most indoor plants, is between 18°C - 22°C at night, and 22°C - 27°C during the day. Though they CAN tolerate lower temperatures, you'll need to REDUCE your watering drastically, as the risk of overwatering increases the lower the temperature is.
- Whenever possible, place your Triostar (this applies to all plants) as far away from the AC vent as possible. This is particularly important for Triostars as the dry out coming out of your AC’s vent will cause a Triostar’s leaves to dry out and begin to curl around the edges. If you see your Triostar's leaves curling and you're confident about your watering, this is most likely the cause.
- To combat the drying effect of the AC, mist your Triostar with water and a mister to replicate its native climate. Once a day is ideal!
Alternatively, you can also take a shallow plate/saucer, fill it with pebbles, place some water into the saucer, and place your plant on top of the pebbles, making sure the water doesn't come in contact with the drainage holes. As the water evaporates from the saucer, it will raise the humidity around the leaves quite effectively - make sure to keep an eye on the water and replace it regularly.
Do I have to re-pot my Triostar as soon as I receive it?
In short, no.
Once you receive your plant, place it in the spot you plan to keep it in (whilst still in its nursery pot) and allow it at least 6 months (ideally 12) to acclimate to your home's temperature and light levels.
Once acclimated, you can choose to either re-pot your plant or leave it in its nursery pot.
Some Common Problems
Not only are Triostars pretty, they're pretty intuitive too.
Brown Leaves
Cause: Underwatering
Suggestion: Maintain the same amount of water but increase your frequency of watering.
Brown Spots
Cause: Too much sunlight
Suggestion: Move your plant to a place with less direct sunlight.
Browning Leaf Edges
Cause: Dry environment
Suggestion: If your plant is next to an AC vent, try moving it away.
Curling Leaves
Cause: Stress from low humidity, temperature, water quality, or overwatering
Suggestion: Identify the issue then adjust your care accordingly.
Fading Color
Cause: Not enough light
Suggestion: Move your plant to a place with more sunlight, but not outdoors or under direct sunlight.
Fungus or Mold
Cause 1: Too dry
Suggestion: Re-pot your plant, then Increase humidity around your plant using the pebble-tray method or a humidifier.
Cause 2: Too humid
Suggestion:Re-pot your plant, then adjust its soil, temperature, humidity levels and water schedule as needed.
Growth Has Slowed Down
Cause 1: Not enough light
Suggestion: Move your plant to a place with more sunlight, but not outdoors or under direct sunlight.
Cause 2: Stress
Suggestion: Has your plant been going through a lot of changes? Make sure it's acclimated to its current environment. Place your plant in the spot you plan to keep it in and leave it there, in its nursery pot, for at least 6 months (ideally 12), allowing it to acclimate to its new environment.
Cause 3: Too root-bound
Suggestion: Time to re-pot!
No Flowers
While flowers are possible in spring if kept outdoors, that only applies to places with a climate cooler than the UAE. Here, keep it indoors and give your attention to its magnificent leaves.
Pests
Cause: Low humidity
Suggestion: There are a few methods for getting rid of pests. Showering your plant everyday for 4-6 weeks and/or a neem oil soak are recommended. If the situation is out of control, then use insecticidal soap or pesticides as a last resort. Then, increase humidity around your plant using the pebble-tray method or a humidifier.
Yellow Leaves
Cause 1: Overwatering
Suggestion: Allow soil time to dry out completely (sometimes this can take 2-4 weeks), then slowly re-water
Cause 2: Not enough light
Suggestion: Move your plant to a place with more sunlight, but not outdoors or under direct sunlight.
Buying Triostars Online
When shopping for a plant online, look out for the following:
Height
If you're looking for a table-top plant, then go for one that's 40cm tall. A 60cm tall plant would work well on a low side-table. Plants about 1 meter or taller would work well as statement floor plants.
Note: Stated heights will always include the height of the plant AND planter.
Pot style
This is all about the vibe you're looking for, and you'll typically have a choice amongst different colors and shapes.
If you're looking for subtlety, we suggest a circular pot in white. To make more of a statement, look for contrasting shapes and colors!
Delivery
It goes without saying that your plant supplier should meticulously package all plants.
When you personally buy a plant from a store, you're able to rush it home, ensuring it stays outside for as little time as possible. But when you order online, your plant will ride-share with a lot of other plants all on their way to their new homes.
Depending on where you live, weather can play a big part in your plant's health along the way.
If possible, ask your plant shop what precautions they take to ensure your plants stay as safe as possible en route to you.
Reviews
Reading customer reviews is a good way to get an idea of the customer experience provided by the seller (here's ours, by the way), but you need to practice caution there.
Don't expect to be able to tell a fake review right away, some reviewers can be great con artists, and some negative reviews can be fake to harm the seller.
Your best bet is to zoom out and look at multiple comments from multiple categories to get a good overview of whether you can trust this company and/or their review section.
For example, look at how recent the reviews are, and how spread apart. Was there a sudden spike of comments in a short amount of time? Do they sound like they're all written by someone rehashing the same template? Do they all sound too positive to be real?
Yes, going all detective on reviews can be a chore, but Future You will thank you for it.
Returns and refund policies
Things can go wrong.
Sometimes it's no one's fault, and sometimes there's nothing anyone can do.
So the best practice is to offer (and honor) a no-questions asked return/refund policy. Check out the seller's policy before you make a purchase, so you know you're insured in case things don't work out.
You can check out our return/refund policy here.
Ready to adopt a Triostar?
Your Triostar can't wait to meet you — just choose a height and pot and let's introduce you two!
