How to Propagate Peace Lily: Flowering Stages, Planting, Growing, and Care for Indoors and Outdoors

Known also as spathe flowers or white sail plants, these plants are very popular indoor plants. Shade-loving and aromatic, this specimen will make a lovely addition to any houseplant collection. A peace flag is represented by the white flowers of the Peace Lily, hence its name. Despite being called lilies, they are not lilies. These perennials grow in tropical climates. Growing Peace Lilies for decades with good care and flower is possible. Let’s check out how to propagate Peace Lily below.

Their easy maintenance, low light requirements, and ability to clean and purify the air make them ideal for home or office growing. Besides striking, Peace Lilies have dark green leaves contrasting beautifully with white flowers. Peace Lilies mature in three to five years, growing dark green foliage and blossoming over a year. The flowers of this plant look like large white petals shaped like upright leaves. The spike is topped with many tiny flowers that can reach a length of 6 inches and a width of 4 inches.

Peace Lilies are great indoor plants because they do a great job of surrounding air, which is one of their many benefits. It is best to grow Peace Lilies out of reach of pets and children, however, since this species is toxic. In addition to growing Peace Lilies inside, you can also grow them outdoors. The plants will naturally receive much more ambient light if planted in a shady location rather than inside on a consistently moist surface.

How to propagate Peace Lily

Types of Peace Lilies

Dozens of popular varieties of Peace Lilies have been heavily hybridized. They range from miniature to massive, and the flowers range from snow-white to golden-leaved. Some of the popular types of Peace Lilies include:

Power Petite

This Peace Lily variety is the smallest in the Peace Lily family and offers all the features of a Peace Lily in a compact size. A colorful burst is perfect for that small space. This plant grows around 15-20cm high and has beautiful white flowers and fine rich green foliage. A warm, shady, protected location would also be ideal for outdoor living in the garden or a pot on the patio.

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Mauna Loa Supreme

One of the medium-sized Peace Lilies is the Mauna Loa Supreme Peace Lily. About two to three feet is the maximum height of this plant. On 10- to 12-inch stalks, it produces glossy, lance-shaped leaves that are 9 inches long and 5 inches wide. The flower stem can measure 15 to 20 inches long, and the flowers can measure up to 4 inches wide.

Sensation

In terms of height and width, the sensation Peace Lily is the largest of all commercially produced Peace Lilies. Its dark green foliage has ribbed textures and an attractive appearance even when not blooming. This plant variety intermittently produces large, well-shaped flowers; its leaves are 20 inches long.

Mojo

This low-maintenance free-flowering variety is perfect for pots indoors or shaded underplanting in a frost-free subtropical garden. A large varietal with vibrant green leaves, it is a unique variety. This variety is a little more upright and slender than others. A clear view of the flowers can be seen above the leaves on long stems.

Starlight

This variety has narrow leaves with wavy margins. In addition to having multiple blooms, it can produce as many as 20 flowers on a single plant. It is a flowering perennial that grows up to a height of 60-80 cm. With narrow, pointed leaves on a single, unbranched stem from a bulb. There is a wide range of colors and sizes of flowers, and they are often fragrant. Each flower has six petals and prominent stamens. Red, pink, white, and bi-colored Oriental lilies have highly fragrant trumpet-shaped flowers.

Peace Lily maintenance and care

Lighting requirement for Peacy Lily

Peace Lilies can grow well in shade or partial, making them a good choice for low-light spaces. Peace Lilies also tolerate fluorescent lighting, so they are a good choice if you want to liven up your desk at work. Keeping Peace Lilies in a bright, indirect light spot is ideal. The plant will benefit from the bright morning sun if placed in an east-facing window. In addition to a window that faces north, a Peace Lily would benefit from a window that faces south. Keeping Peace Lilies away from direct sunlight all day, such as in a south-facing window, can cause them to dry out.

Soil requirements for Peace Lily

Peace Lilies grow well in rich, loose potting soil that contains plenty of organic matter. While Peace Lilies are native to tropical canopy conditions with deteriorating plant matter in the soil, these plants will thrive in soil mimicking this composition. However, a well-draining soil mixture is recommended as the plant is very sensitive to too-wet conditions.

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How and when should I water my Peace Lily

Consistency is key when it comes to watering. It is important to keep the soil lightly moist but not overly saturated. When there is not enough moisture or humidity, Peace Lilies will develop brown tips on their leaves. The plant’s leaves droop when thirsty. Feel the soil with your finger when the plant appears less perky than usual. It is time to water again if it feels dry. Fluoride can cause brown leaf tips on Peace Lilies, commonly found in tap water. Water should be filtered and at room temperature, if possible.

Temperature requirement for Peace Lily

An average temperature between 18°C and 27°C is ideal for Peace Lilies and tropical plants. Ensure your plant is protected from drafts, colds, or drastic temperature changes. Therefore, placing these plants by a door exposed to the cold winter air is not advisable. The Peace Lily thrives in high humidity. It is possible to increase the humidity around plants by misting their leaves or placing their pot on a moistened gravel tray.

Plan a good drainage system for your Peace Lily

Because Peace Lilies are susceptible to root rot, it is very important to allow them to dry out between waterings and to use a container that drains well. Place a saucer under the container with drainage holes to catch the water draining. The roots of these plants should be light-colored and firm rather than soggy if they begin to wilt. They are soggy if they have been overwatered or their soil cannot drain.

How and when should I fertilize your Peace Lily

These plants will not require much maintenance if they receive sunlight and water. For a healthy and thriving Peace Lily, fertilizers and nutritional supplements are unnecessary. It is only occasionally necessary to fertilize Peace Lilies because they are not heavy feeders. It is important not to over-fertilize Peace Lilies, as they can be somewhat sensitive plants.

When the plant is most active in the Spring and summer, it should be watered about once a month. Overfertilization results in green blooms. In this case, stop fertilizing the plants and cut the fertilizer dose in half for the next growing season.

How to Plant and grow Peace Lilies

Containers work well for Peace Lilies, but pots much larger than their roots do not work well. So here’s how to plant one:

Peace Lilies can be planted in a container that drains well and is not larger than 13 times the root ball.
The container should be filled 1/3 with Potting Mix, which does not contain compost or bark, known to harbor pesky fungus gnats. Coconut coir is also included in the mix to aid in soil rewetting.
It is best to place the plant in the container so that the top of the root ball is about an inch below the top of the rim.
The more potting mix should be added around the root ball.
Then put a saucer under the Peace Lily and move it to its new location after it has been watered until moisture drains out of the bottom of the pot.

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How to grow Peace Lilies Outdoors

Peace Lilies can be grown outdoors. Therefore, their bright white spathes will brighten up shady areas of your yard all year long. It prefers light shade, with only a little morning or late afternoon sun & dappled shade. As a result, it mimics their natural habitat on the forest floor. When grown outdoors, Peace Lilies commonly reach a height of 2 to 3 feet and a diameter of 3 feet. The plants should be spaced 2 12 to 3 feet apart to ensure good air circulation.

Branches of foliage grow neatly in mounds. Ensure the soil is moist by watering regularly. Leaves that turn brown at the edges are a sign that they have been overwatered. Using a balanced fertilizer, you need to fertilize these plants twice a year, once in the Spring and once in the fall. Whenever the edges of the leaves start to brown, you fertilize the plants too much.

How to grow Peace Lilies indoors

This tropical beauty is typically grown inside as a houseplant, only allowing it to spend the summer outdoors, bringing it inside in the fall when nighttime temperatures fall below 5°C. It is recommended that Peace Lilies be grown in organic potting soil that drains well. Tropical forests have this type of soil on their floors. It is important to keep the soil moist but not wet. The best thing you can do for your plants is to mist them regularly.

Humidity is necessary for them. Place these plants in a room that receives bright indirect sunlight. It is best to have a room facing East so it only receives sunlight in the morning. Keep your plants away from drafts coming from doors and windows. The room shouldn’t be colder than 13°C in the winter.

How to propagate Peace Lilies

Peace Lilies cannot be propagated via leaf or stem cuttings, but they can be easily propagated by division at any time of the year. However, it will take years for plants to propagate from seed to flower, even if an experienced gardener does so. Here is how to propagate Peace Lilies to grow new plants.

Fill a fresh pot with potting soil no larger than 6 inches in diameter.
Remove the mother plant from its pot and carefully loosen the soil around its roots. It is possible to rip the roots if you pull them too quickly, which may result in poor propagation.
Pull the roots gently with your fingers to find several leaves attached to a clump of roots.
Cut any roots connecting the leafy section to the mother plant using a clean, sharp gardening blade. Based on the mother plant’s size, decide how many clumps to cut
Repot the mother plant with fresh soil and plant the new Peace Lily in the pot.
Keep the new plant in a place where there is exposure to plenty of indirect light as it adjusts to its new home.
The soil should be moist but not soggy during the first few weeks of the plant’s life. After that, continue to care for the new plant as usual.

Potting and repotting Peace Lilies

The Peace Lily should be replanted in late winter when it begins to grow new shoots before the Spring growing season. Whenever you repot these plants, you should only go one size up. Once the plant can fit inside a 10-inch pot, it will likely not require larger pots in the future. Consider pruning it and adding fresh soil to the same pot rather than resizing it. Your pot should have drainage holes.

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It is also a good time to divide the Peace Lily to make a new plant when you are repotting. It is also possible to grow Peace Lilies in water without soil. Fill the vase with glass stones or pebbles so the roots of the plant remain submerged below the water line, and the stems and leaves remain above. The plant’s green parts will not rot by doing this.

Different stages of Peace Lily flowering

Surprisingly, these beautiful flowers aren’t lilies. Instead, a spadix is the part of the Peace Lily we call the flower. Each bloom is surrounded by an elegantly changed leaf known as a spathe. To maximize the beauty of your Peace Lily flowers, you should encourage them at every stage of their growth. A Peace Lily bloom goes through four stages: budding, blooming, seed production, and death. Usually, Spring is the time for Peace Lilies to bloom.

Flower Buds

It is easy to overlook a new Peace Lily bloom. The early buds look like fresh leaves, revealing something about their origin. Spathes of new flowers, however, are modified leaves that developed to protect spadixes, so they look like new foliage at first.

Flowering

As the bud matures, it will unfold like a leaf. Then, the spadix appears, and the spathe opens gracefully around it to frame the growing flower. As the flower matures, each tiny bud will open, inviting pollinators. Spadixes of flowers contain very small and densely packed structures that are quite difficult to discern with the naked eye.

Production of seeds

A Peace Lily’s tiny flowers will be pollinated if it is lucky, and the process will continue. As the flowers close, they slowly turn into small structures that resemble berries. Pebbly textures become more apparent as the spadix darkens. There is a tendency for the spathe to wilt at this point. Because of this, the tips will turn yellow or brown or lose their crisp white appearance.

Death

Many gardeners choose to cut off the tops of their Peace Lilies when the spathes begin to brown. Nonetheless, if the dying flower remains where it is, it will continue to fall apart and spread its seeds. The spathe eventually dies as the seeds mature and fall from the spadix. Like any other leaf, it deteriorates, turning brown or black and shriveling. The disintegration of the spadix occurs.

Before dead flowers reach the seed dispersal stage, removing them is recommended. The fertilization process doesn’t do much for the parent plant since it is a messy part of its life cycle. A plant that produces fewer crisp new blooms will also attract pests, and a plant with fewer blooms will keep its flowers for longer.

How to get Peace Lilies to bloom

Most Peace Lilies bloom twice a year in Spring and fall when grown in the right conditions. The flowers generally last about six weeks but can last up to two months. If the Peace Lily does not bloom, the most common cause is insufficient light. If a Peace Lily plant is not close enough to a window, it may not flower in a low-light environment.

Hallways and rooms with no windows are not ideal places for Peace Lilies to bloom. Rather than placing the plant in direct sunlight, move it to an area with medium, indirect light. It is also possible for the Peace Lily to be restricted from flowering if it is exposed to direct sunlight since the harsh exposure might burn the leaves and damage the plant.

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Common problems with Peace Lilies

Easy-care Peace Lilies are a great option for beginner plant parents because they are fairly easy to grow. However, like any other, houseplants can encounter a few common problems as they grow. Darkness can prevent Peace Lilies from flowering and make them more susceptible to fungi such as powdery mildew. You can prevent fungal diseases by offering plenty of indirect light and watering only at the soil line to keep leaves from being splashed. It is necessary in some cases to apply fungicide to restore the plant’s health.

Conclusion

Beginner-friendly Peace Lilies make a beautiful addition to any plant collection. It thrives in low-light environments and purifies the air as it grows. Despite their low maintenance requirements, they are very forgiving plants. Plants will exhibit a sign if they are unhappy, overwatered, or given too much sunlight. However, if you take certain precautions, the Peace Lily will recover quickly and become a beautiful addition to your garden.