A large terrestrial species with impressive heart-shaped leaves that can reach over 90 cm in length. Leaves have a velvety texture with prominent white to pale green venation against a dark green background. New leaves emerge with a coppery-red coloration. The petioles are thick and can reach 60 cm or more.
Anthurium regale tolerates humidity swings better than most velvet-leaved Anthurium species and can be kept at 60 to 70 percent, but to grow large leaves with clear veining aim for 70 percent or more. When humidity stays below 50 percent the leaf tips start to die back. Use a humidifier, greenhouse or cabinet to hold humidity, and keep the air moving so the plant does not sit in stagnant damp.
Use a coarse medium that lets air reach the roots. Pure sphagnum moss works, as does a mix of about five parts bark chips, three parts perlite and two parts sphagnum. Ordinary houseplant compost and peat-based mixes hold stagnant water and damage the roots. In bright indirect light, with diluted liquid feed through the growing season, each new leaf comes out larger than the last.
Low humidity is the most common cause. If leaves dry to brown from the tips and edges, check whether the humidity around the plant has dropped below 60 percent and whether air conditioning or heating blows directly on it. Sun scorch from direct light shows up as bleached pale patches or brown burns on the side facing the light.
Root damage also shows in the leaves. Overwatering or a fine, dense medium leads to root rot, and the leaves turn yellow and then brown over larger areas. Salts from fertilizer and tap water build up in the medium and scorch the leaf tips, so once a month or so flush the pot with plenty of water until it runs freely from the drainage holes.
Anthurium regale is a slow grower. Right after purchase or repotting it produces no new leaves until the roots have settled, and indoors this can take more than a year. Even a plant in good conditions puts out roughly one new leaf every two to three months during the growing season, and it barely moves in winter.
To speed it up, keep the temperature at 20 to 28°C with humidity of 70 percent or more and bright indirect light. Growth slows when temperatures stay above 30°C for days. In a greenhouse where temperature and humidity are steady it grows noticeably faster than in a living room.
Keep it above 15°C in winter. Below 15°C growth stops and the leaves discolor, and below 10°C the plant suffers cold damage it does not recover from and may die. Windowsills get cold at night, so move the plant away from the glass after dark and keep it out of the direct flow of heaters.
Reduce watering from every four to seven days in spring through autumn to about every ten to fourteen days in winter, watering when the medium is starting to dry. Heating dries indoor air, so use a humidifier or similar to hold humidity. Do not feed in winter while growth has stopped.
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