Elegant Peace Lily Adds Flair to Your Indoor Garden

Elegant Peace Lily Adds Flair to Your Indoor Garden

If you want a blooming houseplant that requires low light and takes very little care, grow a peace lily (Spathiphyllum). The long-lasting flowers of this elegant beauty light up the indoor garden with white, lightly fragrant flowers that resemble calla lilies. The blooms begin as a pale green color and eventually become a creamy white.

Peace lilies are considered one of the best indoor plants for cleaning your indoor air.  Research done by NASA scientists found that peace lilies scour your indoor air of a number of toxic pollutants, including benzene, trichloroethylene, acetone, ammonia and formaldehyde.

                               

This easy-to-grow houseplant also tolerates low-humidity and drought. Forget to water your peace lily and it will alert you by drooping. Unlike many houseplants that will give up at that point, however, peace lilies spring back once you water them.

To have luck growing a peace lily, keep the following cultivation tips in mind.

Lighting. Provide medium light. Peace lily foliage will burn when subjected to high light conditions, and blooming will be limited. If you wish to place a peace lily near the window, only do so in front of a northern exposure window. The plants also do well under full-spectrum lighting.

Watering. Peace lilies like to remain moist. Water when the first ½ inch of soil has dried. Avoid letting them dry out, as they wilt badly. While they will generally come back once watered, the drought does weaken the plant and slows down its growth.

Fertilizing. Feed peace lily monthly with a well-balanced, organic fertilizer. Also top dress the plant every six months with a ½-inch layer of worm compost, which will enrich the soil and give the plant necessary micronutrients.

Trimming. Cut flower stalks off at the base once the flowers fade. Pruning encourages the plant to re-bloom and keeps it tidy.

Temperature. Peace lilies are susceptible to damage in cold temperatures. They prefer 65 to 70 degrees. Avoid keeping them in a room that is 60 degrees or lower.

Pests. Peace lilies have very few problems with pests. Check occasionally for mealybugs, scale and spider mites. Mealybugs can be sprayed with isopropyl alcohol, scale can be treated with horticultural oil, and spider mites can be eradicated with neem oil or insecticidal soap.