How to Care for a Peace Lily (2023)

FAQs

How often should you water a peace lily? ›

Your Peace Lily enjoys weekly waterings, but it will tell you when it needs water by drooping its leaves. During the winter months feel free to only water your plant fortnightly.

If you don't like the appearance of the brown tips, you can either trim off the entire leaf, and wait for new foliage to replace it, or snip off just the tips. Let's take a look at five top reasons for brown leaf tips and get your peace lily back on track.

The most common reasons for peace lily leaves turning brown is because of low humidity, underwatering and too much sun. Peace lilies are topical plants that prefer humid conditions, evenly moist soil and shade. If the air around the leaves and soil around the roots is too dry, the leaf tips turn brown.

Bright, indirect light is best for peace lilies, ideally sheltered from cold draughts, so choose a spot away from doors and fire places. peace lilies are used to a tropical environment so a humid room, such as a bathroom, is best.

Keep them out of direct sunlight in a bright to moderate light area. If the light is too low and your lily is not flowering, move it to a brighter area. On the other hand, excessively bright light can also trigger photosynthesis in the spathes and make them green rather than pure white.

Peace lilies are almost always thirsty. The solution is simple. Put a deep tray underneath and add water every few days to the tray and let it drink up from the bottom. The reason to water from the bottom is that if you continually pour water on top of the plant, it will form black spots on the leaves.

Watering about once a week and spritzing leaves with water throughout the summer will help keep your peace lily hydrated. If your plant seems to completely droop, don't give up — water and spritz and give it a chance to revive.

Peace lilies are sensitive to chemicals commonly found in tap water, such as fluoride, which may cause brown leaf tips. Use filtered, room-temperature water, if possible.

An overwatered Peace Lily shows the early symptoms of drooping leaves that pale over time and turn yellow. If the plant is continuously overwatered for an extended period, leaf edema occurs. The leaf tips slowly become brown, develop water blisters, and the plant depicts no sign of growth.

Many people consider three to five years an average peace lily lifespan. However, indoor peace lilies have been known to live two decades or more. Late winter or early spring is the best time to repot and propagate peace lilies.

When should you repot a peace lily? ›

Assuming the situation isn't urgent, spring is the best time to do the job. Your plant should quickly rebound at that time of year and start growing strong. The peace lily is one of those plants that doesn't mind being rootbound.

Symptoms: The peace lily has an overall drooping appearance and often the leaves are curling up. The tips of the leaves often turn brown and sometimes yellow. Causes: Low Humidity, underwatering and soil that repels water.

Peace lilies are perfectly happy growing in containers, but they don't like sitting in pots much larger than their root balls. Here's how to plant one: 1. Select a container that has good drainage and is no more than ⅓ larger than the root ball of your peace lily.

The humidity in bathrooms and kitchens is usually a bit higher than other locations inside buildings making them the perfect place for a Peace Lily. One other advantage to placing Peace Lilies in bathrooms, kitchens and other humid areas is its natural ability to absorb mold spores from the air.

Peace lilies are especially great for bathrooms because they love the humid environment that you can't normally get in other rooms of the house. Try to place it close to a shower where it can get plenty of steam.

First remove any dead or drying leaves and blooms. If the soil is dry, saturate it, and make sure any excess water can drain away from the plant. Monitor the plant; give it water when the soil begins to dry out. In a week or so, you should see the sign of new growth.

Peace lilies flower best in bright but indirect light, and usually flower in spring, producing one or two white hooded blooms that can last for over a month. They may occasionally flower again in autumn. Once the flowers have faded, deadhead them to keep the plant looking neat.

Healthy peace lily plants will bloom twice a year, in spring and again in fall. What is this? The flowers usually last for one to two months before turning brown.

You should remove the dead leaves of a peace lily plant to encourage new leaf growth. When you see dead leaves that are brown or yellow, cut on the stalk near the base of the plant. If the dead leaves are dry and wilted, you can simply tug on them and they should pull out easily.

Why is my peace lily drooping? ›

Drooping or yellowing leaves can be a sign of both underwatering and overwatering. You should only be watering when the top 50% of the potting mix has completely dried out. Water thoroughly until it flows out of the drainage hole and discard any excess water.

Flowers have male and female parts. Male parts produce pollen. You need to collect pollen and apply it to the female parts in order for pollination to take place, so that the flowers can produce seeds. Closely monitor your peace lily to see when it is ready for pollen collection.

Once the blooms on a Peace Lily plant turn brown, they need to be trimmed for better growth. This will encourage your plant to bloom frequently. You should remove the dead flowers by cutting the stalk at the base. But remember that flowers can die due to an underlying issue as well.

Many people consider three to five years an average peace lily lifespan. However, indoor peace lilies have been known to live two decades or more. Late winter or early spring is the best time to repot and propagate peace lilies.

First remove any dead or drying leaves and blooms. If the soil is dry, saturate it, and make sure any excess water can drain away from the plant. Monitor the plant; give it water when the soil begins to dry out. In a week or so, you should see the sign of new growth.

Peace lilies are a good choice for low-light spaces because they can thrive in shade or partial shade. They also tolerate fluorescent lights, so if you need a plant friend to liven up your desk at the office, peace lily is a good option.

Tip: One nice thing about peace lilies is that they will tell you when they're thirsty: the plant's leaves start to droop. When the plant starts to look less “perky” than usual, test the soil with your finger. If it feels dry, it's time to water again.

The solution to this is to mist the leaves of your peace lily at least once per week if not more often, to create a humid micro-climate that replicates the humid conditions of its native rainforest environment.

Peace lily leaves also enjoy a good misting, which you can do when you water throughout the summer. Watering is another area in which your peace lily will communicate with you: If leaves begin to droop, it's time to water and your plant won't be any worse for the little bit of wear.

Overwatering is the most common cause of a Peace Lily dying. Look for yellow, wilting foliage, and signs of root rot. Treat promptly, and avoid watering on a schedule. Underwatering, cold temperatures, nutrient problems, pests, or disease can also stress your plant and cause decline.

What months do peace lilies bloom? ›

Time of Year. One of the things people love about peace lilies is that they can bloom any time of year. But they are technically seasonal bloomers, so while you might see blossoms year-round, you shouldn't expect them. Their natural flowering season is between February and September.

Drooping or yellowing leaves can be a sign of both underwatering and overwatering. You should only be watering when the top 50% of the potting mix has completely dried out. Water thoroughly until it flows out of the drainage hole and discard any excess water.

Fruit/Berries: The fruit are white berries. Other: The sap is clear. Symptoms: This plant, if eaten, can produce a tingling or burning sensation, followed by swelling of the lips, mouth and tongue. Contact dermatitis may also occur in sensitive individuals.

When the pressure of moisture and minerals inside your Peace Lily's body gets high enough, the plant can relieve itself by shedding a bit of sap. Though houseplant owners often call this “weeping”, “crying”, or “sweating”, the botanical term is guttation.

If your pot and soil drain well, your peace lily will need to be watered every 7-10 days. If you live in a warm, dry area, your peace lily may need to be watered more often. If you live in a cooler or more humid climate, you may need to water a little less often.

The white blooms of the peace lily generally appear in the spring as more of a modified leaf, a “bract,” than a multi-petaled flower. Very well cared for plants may bloom again in the fall as well. Blooms last for two months or more and after blooms fade, a period of non-blooming follows.

This is all part of the peace lily lifecycle. By the time the spadix is brown, it's well on its way to dying. It will begin to wither and then it may fall off on its own if you don't choose to prune the browned spadix before nature takes its course.

The humidity in bathrooms and kitchens is usually a bit higher than other locations inside buildings making them the perfect place for a Peace Lily. One other advantage to placing Peace Lilies in bathrooms, kitchens and other humid areas is its natural ability to absorb mold spores from the air.

So, now the decision-making is handed over to you. Choose Miracle-Gro Indoor Plant Food for an instant boost of nutrients for your Peace Lilies. The gentle 1-1-1 NPK ratio can be added to water and applied as you water and is versatile enough to use for all other houseplant feeding needs too.

Sometimes a new plant can bring twice as much value if it's big enough to be split into two, says Jane Edmanson. She has a large peace lily and shows how easy it is to cut the root ball in half with a sharp knife, forming two or even three new plants.

Should I cut the yellow leaves off of my peace lily? ›

Pruning a peace lily isn't limited to the flower stalks. Sometimes leaves yellow and start to shrivel up. This may be due to under watering or too much light, but it can also happen just because of old age. If any of your leaves are turning color or drying out, just cut the offending leaves away at their base.

If your Peace Lily is in great shape, the flowers may last a bit longer. They've been known to stay healthy for long as two months after unfurling. Eventually, the spathe will turn green, then brown, and it will start to sag and crumple. This is your cue that it's time to deadhead.

Depending on the variety, some may bloom only once a year, but most popular varieties will bloom in the spring and fall. Young plants will not flower naturally. It can take plants a year or more before they're able to bloom. Peace lilies bloom every year, up to twice a year.

When it comes to fertilizing a peace lily, any good quality, water-soluble houseplant fertilizer is fine. Look for a product with a balanced ratio, such as 20-20-20, diluted to one-half or one-quarter strength. Be sure to water after feeding your peace lily to distribute the fertilizer evenly around the roots.

This plant will grow to a height of about 2 to 3 feet. Its 9-inch long and 5-inch wide, glossy, lance-shaped leaves are produced on 10- to 12-inch stalks. The flower stem can be 15 to 20 inches long, and the flowers are up to 4 inches wide.

Peace lilies love shade, so it will do well in a room with a north or west-facing window, but don't put it right by the window. If the leaves turn yellow, give it a little more light. If they turn brown, move it farther from the window.

Discoloration and Dried-Out Leaves: An underwatered peace lily may show discoloration of the leaves to yellow or brown, partnered with a dried-out texture. However, browned, crispy spots on the leaves that are not partnered with dry soil may point to sunscald, when too much direct sunlight burns a plant's foliage.

How long do peace lilies take to recover? As far as watering and sunlight is completely taken care of, the peace lily may take up to two to three weeks to recover properly.