Calathea rufibarba 'Bluegrass' - Green Velvet Calathea
Sprouts of Bristol
Calathea rufibarba ‘Bluegrass’, commonly known as the Green Velvet Calathea, is admired for its elongated, wavy-edged leaves with a rich green upper surface and soft, velvety burgundy undersides. Known for its tactile foliage and graceful growth habit, it brings texture and vibrancy to any indoor space. Like all Calatheas, it also displays nyctinasty, with leaves gently folding up at night and unfurling in the morning.
Scientific Name
Calathea rufibarba ‘Bluegrass’ (basket, red beard)
Synonyms
Goeppertia rufibarba – reclassified under the Goeppertia genus but still widely known as Calathea.
Common Name
Green Velvet Calathea, Furry Feather Calathea
Origin
Native to the tropical rainforests of Brazil.
Light
Thrives in bright, indirect light. It can tolerate lower light but may grow more slowly. Avoid direct sunlight, which can scorch the delicate leaves and fade their colour.
Water
Keep the soil consistently moist but not waterlogged. Water when the top 2–3 cm of soil feels dry, using room-temperature water. This plant is sensitive to tap water chemicals, so filtered or rainwater is ideal.
Humidity
Prefers high humidity. Place it near a humidifier, on a pebble tray with water, or mist regularly to maintain moisture around the leaves. Bathrooms and kitchens are ideal environments.
Soil
Use a well-draining, peat-based potting mix with added perlite. A mix designed for tropical houseplants works well. Repot every 2–3 years in spring to refresh the soil and allow room for growth.
Food
Feed every 4 weeks during the growing season (spring and summer) with a balanced, diluted liquid fertiliser. Pause feeding in autumn and winter when growth slows.
Temperature
Thrives in temperatures between 18–26°C. Avoid temperatures below 15°C and protect from cold drafts or sudden temperature changes.
Pet-safe
Yes, non-toxic to cats and dogs.
Sprouts Top Tips
To keep the leaves looking their best, avoid letting water sit on the foliage and ensure the plant is not exposed to cold drafts. If the leaf edges turn brown, it’s usually a sign that humidity is too low or the water quality needs improvement.
Extras
The velvety texture of the leaves is due to fine hairs, giving the plant its ‘Green Velvet’ nickname. Its natural movement in response to light changes adds a dynamic touch to any room.
Important Information
If you have any questions, please check out the below or get in touch via our contact formWe're devoted to sending our customers quality plants with the best service around. Every plant is backed by our 7-day guarantee, so they arrive in good health.
Our team takes extra steps when prepping plants for transportation, but they're still sensitive to changes, so there may be minor cosmetic issues. We always aim to photograph and disclose any flaws before shipping, but a living creature travelling across the country in a box can take a hot minute to adjust to its new life.
If you have any issues within 7 days of receiving your order, holler at our customer support team on our contact form with your order details and some pics of the issue. After the guarantee has expired, though, we can't refund as we can't guarantee care and environmental factors. If you repot the plant during the 7 days, the guarantee is void.
We have been sending plants up and down the country for many year now and we like to think we have our way down to an art.
We protect the plant from falling out of the soil with tissue paper and tape if needed, then we wrap the plant in corrugated cardboard, and sometimes we protect the leaves with extra tissue paper if required. This is then placed into a box and if there is any empty space, we fill this with void fill to stop the plants moving around inside the box. Sometimes we will write a note on your packing slip to water the plant on arrival, so please look out for this. This is due a freshly watered plant going in a box will not only be soggy, but as the plant is in darkness this can sometimes make the plant unhappy when just freshly watered.
If your plant arrives to you unhappy, please send us a photo of the plant and packaging if relevant straight away, so we can advise you.
Online orders are packed and dispatched within a few days. Usually depending on volumes, we aim to get your order dispatched within 1 working day. We have collections from Royal Mail 6 days a week so deliveries tend to be speedy.
Our standard parcel delivery service is £4.99 for Royal Mail Tracked48, you can upgrade to Tracked24 for £2.50.
We do offer a Tracked48 Large Letter option for £2.99, and Tracked24 for £1 extra, but this only applies to products less than 2.5cm thick.
*Deliveries 7 days a week only included Tracked24 parcels.
Link to your shipping policy
We get a lot of boxes, packaging and whatnot at Sprouts from all our various supplier's deliveries. We re-use this packaging material where possible, plus we take in donations from local businesses and customers to our shop to avoid excess packaging going to landfill. Sometimes your delivery might look a little different, or come in a branded box from another company, but rest assured the items inside are carefully packed with love and attention inside. We use paper tape and all our branded materials included are fully recyclable. Sometimes we use polystyrene, bubble wrap or plastic wrap in the packaging, all these items are not new and where possible, please use them again.
We have partnered with Zedify to offer low-carbon deliveries in Central Bristol for £6.99.
Zedify collect and deliver orders from us Monday - Friday and will usually deliver your order the same day its collected. If you place your order before 11am, we will aim to get it collected the same day but this isnt always possible. When you have received your dispatch email, Zedify should be delivering your order the same day, anytime before 6pm.
We cannot give an idea of time, but if you would prefer delivery on a certain date (Monday - Friday) please get in touch or leave a note at check out with your preferred delivery date and we will do our best to accommodate your request.
Zedify deliver to the following postcodes BS1, BS2, BS3, BS4, BS5, BS6, BS7, BS8 (1, 2, 3A - 3N, 4), BS9 (1,3,4).
Select click and collect at checkout to collect your order from our Bristol shop.
You will get an email when your order is ready to collect, where possible please come and collect your order the same day as we have limited space. If you are going to collect your order at a later date, please let us know in the message box at check out so we know when to expect you. Some items such as gift sets, kits and pre-order items may not be ready to collect the same day, again please let us know what day you would like to collect and we will let you know if there's any issues.
We do not offer free returns, but if you are unhappy with your delivery, please get in touch. If your parcel or order has been damaged, please take photos and send these over to our team so we can look into this for you.
If you have ordered an item and you would like to exchange it, we should be able to do this for you. There may be an extra charge for delivery, but get in touch to discuss. For plants there is a 7 day return policy and 30 days for everything else, apart from sale items which are none returnable.
You can return or exchange in our Bristol shop for free.
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