The prayer plant houseplant may tolerate low light levels to some extent, but it thrives in direct, bright sunlight. For optimum growth, the prayer plant demands well-drained soil and high humidity. Houseplants of the prayer plant should be kept damp but not drenched. From spring to fall, hydrate prayer plant houseplants with warm water and treat them with an all-purpose fertilizer every two weeks.
The soil has to remain drier throughout winter hibernation. However, keep in mind that dry air can also be an issue in the winter. As a result, grouping the prayer plant with other indoor plants and sprinkling it every day with warm water will help to increase the humidity in the air. It also helps to lay the plant’s container on top of a shallow dish of pebbles and water or a bowl of water close by. However, avoid letting the prayer plant submerge itself in water. The prayer plant prefers temperatures between 60 and 80 °F (16-27 C.).
How frequently should a prayer plant be watered?
Water once every 12 weeks, letting the soil half-dry in between applications. In brighter light, water more frequently, and in less-bright light, less frequently.
Marantas are susceptible to the effects of hard water. Use filtered water if possible, or let water sit out overnight before using.
How much sun is required by a prayer plant?
For the nooks of your house that seldom receive direct sunshine, prayer plants make fantastic indoor plants. They flourish in full shade or in moderate indirect light. In fact, prayer plant leaves can get big brown blotches and finally fall off if they are exposed to a lot of natural light.
A prayer plant’s leaves will frequently totally wither during their dormant season, which typically occurs throughout the winter, but this does not imply that the plant is dead. The leaves will most likely regenerate in the spring if intense light is provided.
Where should a prayer plant be placed?
Your prayer plant should be hung or placed close to a window so it may get some filtered light. Never place your plant in direct sunlight as this may cause the leaves to burn, develop spots or blotches, or lose color intensity. In general, prayer plants can tolerate locations with less light.
How is a prayer plant maintained in good health?
All cultivars or kinds of prayer plants require essentially the same kind of maintenance. Here are some instructions for taking care of a prayer plant, both indoors and outdoors:
- 1. Avoid overwatering. Avoid overwatering prayer plants even if they prefer their soil moist. Don’t let the soil entirely dry out throughout the growing season; water when the soil’s surface becomes dry. Overwatering can result in root rot and fungus issues, as well as yellowing and falling off of the leaf tips. Additionally, avoid using cold water when washing. The water should be at room temperature or slightly warmer—80 degrees Fahrenheit is not acceptable. Most of the time, tap water is acceptable.
- 2. Regularly fertilize. During the growing season, which is normally from late spring to early fall, treat your prayer plant about every two weeks using a water-soluble houseplant fertilizer. In the winter, the plant only need fertilizer around once a month. You might wish to dilute the fertilizer to half strength because too much fertilizer can result in brown leaves or even the death of the plant.
- 3. Choose the proper soil. Prayer plants may normally be grown using regular potting soil, but make sure the pot has drainage holes and the soil is airy and well-draining. Peat moss, perlite, loam soil, and coarse sand can all be combined to create your own custom prayer plant soil. Keep in mind that too much perlite might cause fluoride burn, which can cause leaves to become brown.
- 4. Keep the air moist. Prayer plants may need a humidifier to keep the indoor growing space moist when they are grown outside of their native growth regions and hardiness zones. Brown tips on the leaves can result from an environment that is overly dry. Because bathrooms are typically more humid than other rooms in a house, they are suitable places for prayer plants.
- 5. Recognize when to repot. When the prayer plant’s roots begin to protrude through its pot’s drainage holes, repotting is required. It’s also time to repot the plant if it stops growing or requires frequent watering to keep the soil moist. You shouldn’t have to move prayer plants too frequently, though, as they prefer to be rather rootbound.
- 6. Control light. Prayer plants thrive in warm, gloomy environments and prefer indirect light to direct light. You should give the plants reduced light, controlled by either location or some sort of shelter, as they are native to rainforests. Don’t put them in completely dark regions either because the leaves won’t fully open during the day if they don’t get enough light. The plant is receiving too much sun if the color of its leaves begins to fade.
- Pruning is not necessary. Even though prayer plants do not require pruning, you can alter the plant’s growth pattern to give it a bushier appearance by trimming the leaves slightly above the leaf node. This kind of pruning promotes new, outward growth.
- 8. Benefit from propagation. Profit from a strong prayer plant by multiplying it to produce additional plants. Prayer plants can be multiplied by either taking stem cuttings or splitting the entire plant. Pull a part of the prayer plant away when it’s time to repot it, gently separate the roots, and then plant the new plant in a separate pot. Cut the stem below the leaf and lay it in a glass of water to make stem cuttings. Every few days until new roots appear, replace the water.
- 9. Treat illnesses and pests. You should keep an eye out for mealybugs and spider mites when growing prayer plants. Neem oil can be applied sparingly to the plant to get rid of an infestation. Due of the moist soil and humid surroundings, fungus disease is the most prevalent illness that affects prayer plants. Use well-draining soil, refrain from overwatering, and keep the leaves of the prayer plant away from any pools of water to avoid problems.
Should my prayer plant be misted?
Put your Neon Prayer Plant in a spot with strong, directional light. Avoid placing it in direct sunlight, as too much of it may burn the foliage and diminish the hues of the leaves.
Your plant will thrive at temperatures above 55 degrees at night and between 68 and 85 degrees during the day. Keep it out of the way of drafts, especially in the winter.
If you want your Prayer Plant to develop more vigorously and fully, you can prune it. Right above a leaf node, cut the stems with sterilized, sharp scissors. Directly beneath the cut spot, the plant will produce new branches, giving it a bushier appearance.
How can I determine the health of my prayer plant?
Optimum Prayer Flat and strong leaves are ideal for plants. A plant that is sagging may also have fragile stems and/or curled leaves. Because this plant moves in reaction to the light levels, keep in mind that the leaves will point downward during the day. Check to see if the plant still appears drooping in the late evening.
Why is it Happening?
Lack of moisture is the main cause of a prayer plant becoming drooping. That could imply that the surroundings is too dry or that the soil has dried out excessively. Because their cells don’t have enough moisture to support the leaves, dry prayer plants droop. Consider the difference in stiffness between an empty and a filled balloon.
The Solution:
Give the potting soil a thorough watering if it is completely dry to see if that fixes the issue. Within a day or so, your plant should return to its regular appearance.
If the problem isn’t dry potting soil, it can be that your humidity level is too low. By placing your Prayer Plant in a group with other plants, giving a pebble tray, or purchasing a humidifier, you can raise the humidity level in the area surrounding it.
If the potting soil is kept excessively wet, prayer plants may also appear to be drooping. Plants that are overwatered frequently exhibit wilted appearances, yellowing leaves, and etiolated (leggy) stems. Overwatered Prayer Plants are more difficult to revive than underwatered ones, but you can start by draining any extra water and aerating the soil. If the situation is dire, you might want to repot the plant in fresh, drier potting soil.
You can read this article, The Most Common Causes of Droopy Prayer Plans and Steps to Recovery, for a more thorough discussion of the problems and remedies for a droopy prayer plant.
Must I remove the brown leaves from the prayer plant?
Damaged, dying, or dead growth is intended to be removed by this kind of pruning. Even if they don’t prune their Marantas for any other reason, the majority of people will wish to perform this kind of maintenance pruning on a regular basis.
In an effort to keep your Prayer Plant from succumbing to a significant bug infestation, you might also need to trim off some of its branches. Major plant parts can occasionally be removed more easily than they can be treated.
You do not need to limit this sort of pruning to a specific season or worry about doing it too frequently, unlike the two pruning techniques mentioned above. If a leaf on your Prayer Plant starts to turn yellow or brown, or if it is unintentionally torn or broken, go ahead and trim it off. Unfortunately, a wounded leaf can’t heal, and it will eventually wilt and fall off regardless. Your plant will remain healthy and appealing with a simple removal.
Do praying plants enjoy restrooms?
With its colorful, patterned foliage, it’s easy to understand why the Prayer Plant has been a well-liked indoor plant for so long. These spectacular leaves are sure to draw attention with their flashes of neon green, deep purple, bright pink, and other colors, but as day gives way to night, the real show starts. If you’re paying closely, you might be able to see Prayer Plants, along with many other Marantaceae plants, fold up their leaves at night. Our friend Darryl at Houseplant Journal has some fantastic time-lapse footage of his Prayer Plants in action if you want to witness the entire process.
It can be challenging to keep prayer plants happy. When choosing a location for yours, keep in mind that they thrive in areas with moderate humidity. Given that the steam from the shower or bath will add humidity to the air, a bathroom with moderately strong indirect light may be the ideal setting. Your bathroom has no windows, right? You may only need to increase the humidity around Prayer Plants by keeping them in a grouping of plants, running a humidifier, using a humidity tray (a tray with pebbles and water that sits under the plant), or misting the leaves. Prayer Plants can be placed anywhere with bright to medium indirect light. You probably need to give your plant extra humidity if it appears to be receiving the ideal quantity of water and light but the leaves are turning brown in areas or along the margins. The reward that this gorgeous, active plant offers makes the extra work well worth it.
GET THE GREEN: Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura; depicted are ‘Kim’ and ‘Marisela,’ but there are many varieties)
WATERING: Plant in a container with sufficient drainage. Maintain a uniformly wet but not waterlogged soil. Just before the soil’s surface dries out, water. Prayer If leaves are left to get too dry between waterings, they may turn brown in places and along the margins. Plants dislike having their leaves entirely dry out. This plant may experience a dormant spell throughout the winter where little to no development will be visible. That is typical. Simply allow the soil to dry out a little bit more than it did during the warmer growing season during this period.
Direct sunlight that ranges from bright to medium. Keep away from the sun’s rays. It may be getting too much light if some of the leaves turn brown and crispy, but this can also mean the plant needs more water or humidity, so check that first before moving it.
PLACEMENT: Because the Prayer Plant will branch out a little, it looks lovely hanging from a hook or perched on a shelf where it may expand out. But because it doesn’t grow too big, this plant is ideal for a plant cluster. Because this plant prefers humidity, it would do well in a bathroom with adequate indirect lighting.
Extra credit: To keep leaves looking their best, more humidity is required. This plant will benefit from being kept with other plants, and a humidifier or misting the leaves would also be beneficial. Keep a watch on prayer plants around sunset, and you could catch a glimpse of their little bedtime dance when they fold their leaves at night.
A WORD OF CAUTION: The ASPCA states that cats and dogs are not harmed by prayer plants. Yay!
Want to learn more about taking care of all of your indoor plants and live in the LA area? Attend Danae’s Houseplant 101 course at The Line Hotel this Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. Complete information and registration here.
Why do prayer plants’ tops turn brown?
When you bring a prayer plant into your home, you definitely want to take advantage of the lovely foliage’s aesthetic appeal. Therefore, it’s not amusing to notice those gorgeously patterned leaves getting brown tips or edges.
Let’s examine some of the most typical causes of brown leaves in these tropical houseplants so you can maintain their lush, untarnished appearance.
Too Little Soil Moisture
If the leaf margins or tips of your prayer plant are brown and you do not water it frequently, there may not be enough moisture in the air.
The Marantaceae family prefers damp soil that is not soggy or waterlogged. In order to avoid overwatering, many houseplants benefit from a little neglect, but this is not the case with these species.
You may need to water them up to twice a week, and you should definitely check on them at least that frequently, depending on the conditions in your home.
If you’re currently watering your plant twice a week or more, it might be time to repot it or the soil may not be retaining enough moisture to suit your plant’s needs.
Look at your indoor plant in its container. Are roots poking through the dirt at the top of the pot or coming from the holes at the bottom?
If so, it’s probably time to repot since your maranta, calathea, stromanthe, or ctenanthe is likely becoming rootbound.
If your plant appears to be drying out too soon yet being rootbound doesn’t seem to be an issue. Check the potting medium. Does it resemble standard potting soil for indoor plants?
To help them maintain moisture, many species need a rich, peaty potting medium. You might wish to include some coconut coir in your potting mix to increase moisture retention.
Coconut coir, which has the same moisture-retaining and somewhat acidic properties as peat moss but is a more sustainable, renewable resource.