PlantFiles: Rose Painted Calathea
Calathea roseopicta

This is a gorgeous plant, very exotic-looking. It's very "alive" and once you find the right spot for it you'll see it develop a day/night rhythm. It's definitey a sucker-- I have to water it constantly. (In fact, I've already brought it back from the dead twice, so at least I can vouch for its hardiness!) From what I understand, brown/dried-out edges and leaf points come from watering it with hard water; this plant hates calcium. If you live in an area with very hard water, you need to use bottled water. If you've soft water and it's still not doing the trick, then you need to leave the water sitting out overnight. I've honestly done fine with water out of the tap where I am. Any leaves that have gone brown or crispy get snipped near the base and new ones will grow, but not so much in the summer. The plant can live forever if you remember to keep the soil moist. However, you need a pot that drains well, otherwise the root ball will rot.

It seems that everytime a new leaf grows, one or two die. Also, the tips of leaves are dried and brown. Can someone help?

I have mine here in Rio de Janeiro growing confortably in a darker and humid corner of my... let´s call it a "yard". I bought it 6 years ago, and have no need to fertilize or repot it so far. It blooms every year, with small blue-purple flowers hidden under flat, green bracts.