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Anthurium papillilaminum care

Aroids · fussy to keep

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Anthurium papillilaminum wants bright indirect light, never direct sun. Water it every 6 days. Water when the top of the mix is dry to the touch, and let it drain completely. In a bark mix that is often twice a week; in soil it would be a death sentence. Pot it in very chunky — mostly bark and perlite, barely any soil. A weak orchid feed every second watering while growing, and repot once a year. Humidity: above 70%. Toxic to cats, dogs and people if chewed — the sap carries insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which burn the mouth and throat.

A velvet anthurium from Panama with dark, heart-shaped leaves whose surface is covered in tiny raised cells, which give it a crystalline, glittering sheen. Smaller and more compact than crystallinum, and a parent of a great many collector hybrids.

Quick facts

Water
Water every 6 days. Water when the top of the mix is dry to the touch, and let it drain completely. In a bark mix that is often twice a week; in soil it would be a death sentence.
Light
Bright indirect light, never direct sun.
Humidity
Above 70%.
Soil
Very chunky — mostly bark and perlite, barely any soil.
Feeding
A weak orchid feed every second watering while growing.
Repotting
Repot once a year.
Toxic to pets
Toxic to cats, dogs and people if chewed — the sap carries insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which burn the mouth and throat. Keep it off the floor if anything in the house tastes its way through life. The ASPCA does not list Anthurium papillilaminum itself, but lists a relative, Flamingo Flower (Anthurium scherzeranum), as toxic to cats and dogs (checked 26 October 2026).
Difficulty
Fussy.
Mature size
Leaves 15–30 cm.
Native to
Panama.

Watering an Anthurium papillilaminum

Water every 6 days. Water when the top of the mix is dry to the touch, and let it drain completely. In a bark mix that is often twice a week; in soil it would be a death sentence.

That cadence is the one PlantParlour sets for this species when you name it, and it is deliberately on the cautious side — a plant that asks a day early is safer than one that asks a day late. Log each watering and the reminder moves with the plant rather than with the calendar.

Light

Bright indirect light. The flowering kinds need it to keep producing spathes; the velvet-leaved ones scorch easily and want the same brightness filtered through a sheer curtain.

Humidity and temperature

Above 70%. Central heating in winter is what turns a comfortable room into a dry one, and it is the usual reason an established plant suddenly browns at the edges or picks up spider mites.

Soil and potting

Anthuriums are epiphytes. The mix should look wrong: mostly orchid bark and perlite with a little coir, loose enough that water pours straight through. Standard compost suffocates them within a season.

Feeding

A weak orchid feed every second watering while growing. Stop feeding in autumn and start again when you see new growth in spring — feeding a plant that isn't growing just builds up salts in the pot.

Repotting

Repot once a year. Every year or two, into a pot barely larger than the root ball. Bury the stem slightly deeper each time — anthuriums creep upward and go bald at the base otherwise.

Common problems

Propagation

Divide at the base where a plant has made side shoots with their own roots. Velvet species also produce seed from a pollinated spadix, but division is the practical route.

A cutting taken in PlantParlour keeps its link to the plant it came from, so a propagation years later still traces back to the mother plant — which is the point if you ever sell or trade it.

Toxicity and safety

Toxic to cats, dogs and people if chewed — the sap carries insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which burn the mouth and throat. Keep it off the floor if anything in the house tastes its way through life.

The ASPCA does not list Anthurium papillilaminum itself, but lists a relative, Flamingo Flower (Anthurium scherzeranum), as toxic to cats and dogs (checked 26 October 2026).

If your pet has eaten a plant, call your vet, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center on (888) 426-4435, or the Pet Poison Helpline on (855) 764-7661. Both are open around the clock and may charge a consultation fee. Take the plant or its label with you.

This is general information, not veterinary advice. We don't test plants: what we say about toxicity follows the ASPCA's published plant list as it stood on 26 October 2026, and that list can change. "Non-toxic" means not poisonous — a pet that eats enough of any plant can still vomit, and fertiliser, pesticide or leaf shine on a plant can harm it. It also only helps if the plant is what you think it is. It covers cats and dogs only; ask your vet about rabbits, birds, reptiles or anything else, and a doctor about children. Read our terms.

Every houseplant in the library the ASPCA lists as non-toxic to cats and dogs

Questions people ask

How often should you water an Anthurium papillilaminum?

Water every 6 days as a starting point — that is the cadence PlantParlour sets for Anthurium papillilaminum. Water when the top of the mix is dry to the touch, and let it drain completely. In a bark mix that is often twice a week; in soil it would be a death sentence. Light, pot size and the time of year all move that number, so treat it as a reminder to go and check rather than a rule.

How much light does an Anthurium papillilaminum need?

Bright indirect light. The flowering kinds need it to keep producing spathes; the velvet-leaved ones scorch easily and want the same brightness filtered through a sheer curtain.

Is Anthurium papillilaminum toxic to cats and dogs?

Toxic to cats, dogs and people if chewed — the sap carries insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which burn the mouth and throat. Keep it off the floor if anything in the house tastes its way through life. The ASPCA does not list Anthurium papillilaminum itself, but lists a relative, Flamingo Flower (Anthurium scherzeranum), as toxic to cats and dogs (checked 26 October 2026). If a pet has eaten part of a plant, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center on (888) 426-4435 straight away.

How do you propagate an Anthurium papillilaminum?

Divide at the base where a plant has made side shoots with their own roots. Velvet species also produce seed from a pollinated spadix, but division is the practical route.

Or browse every plant in the library.

Keep this plant's record

PlantParlour gives your Anthurium papillilaminum its own page: a photo timeline, reminders set to the cadences above, and every watering, feed, repot and problem written down. Trade or sell it and the whole history goes with it.

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