Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' (Goeppertia louisae 'Maui Queen')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Calathea Maui Queen.

More about calathea louisae 'maui queen'

About Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen'

Goeppertia louisae 'Maui Queen' · also called Calathea Maui Queen · houseplant

'Maui Queen' is a louisae cultivar with elongated green leaves marked by a bold pale-green to creamy feathered brushstroke down the centre, set over wine-purple undersides. A prayer plant, it folds upward at night. It needs warmth, even moisture, high humidity and bright indirect light, and resents hard tap water and chill indoors.

Cold limit: USDA 11-12 (grown as a houseplant in most of the US) · RHS H1b (18-27°C)

What calathea louisae 'maui queen''s hardiness rating actually means

Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 11-12 (grown as a houseplant in most of the US) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for calathea louisae 'maui queen' as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can calathea louisae 'maui queen' go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when calathea louisae 'maui queen' can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is calathea louisae 'maui queen' cold hardy?

Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 11-12 (grown as a houseplant in most of the US)); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature calathea louisae 'maui queen' can survive?

What hardiness zone is calathea louisae 'maui queen'?

Calathea Louisae 'Maui Queen' is rated USDA 11-12 (grown as a houseplant in most of the US) and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can calathea louisae 'maui queen' survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to calathea louisae 'maui queen' below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.