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Growing Peace Lily Plants: Watering, Light, Repotting, and Pests
Learn how to care for a peace lily, one of the most popular indoor plants. These beautiful houseplants are fairly easy to grow, but knowing how often to water peace lilies and what to do if their leaves droop or turn yellow is essential. Plus, find tips on how to repot your peace lily to keep it happy!
About Peace Lilies
Peace lilies are not true lilies. They are tropical, evergreen plants in the Arum family, native to tropical Central and South America. These plants thrive on the forest floor, receiving dappled sunlight and consistent moisture and humidity. Replicating these conditions in the home is the key to keeping your peace lily happy and healthy.
With enough light, peace lilies produce white to off-white flowers starting in the early summer and continue to bloom throughout the year in the right conditions.
Most household varieties of peace lily grow up to 16 inches tall, but larger outdoor cultivars can have leaves up to 6 feet tall. Peace lilies are not cold-hardy, so they can only be grown outdoors in warm, humid climates (USDA Zones 10, 11).
Is the Peace Lily Toxic to Cats and Dogs?
Yes, peace lilies are mildly toxic. All parts of the peace lily plant contain calcium oxalate, which may cause stomach and respiratory irritation if ingested in large amounts. Keep peace lilies out of reach of small children and pets who might chew on the plant. Common plants containing calcium oxalate also include philodendrons, daffodils, true lilies, and hyacinths.
Growing
Lighting
- Place peace lilies in indirect but bright sunlight. An east-facing window is perfect, as the plant will be exposed to the bright morning sun. A north-facing window would also be a good choice for a peace lily.
- Keep peace lilies out of areas where they鈥檒l get direct sunlight all day (such as in a south-facing window), as it may dry them out too much.
Watering
- How often should you water your peace lily? It鈥檚 not the number that matters but the dryness of the soil that counts. Keep the soil lightly moist to the touch but not overly saturated. Peace lilies can tolerate short periods of dry soil, but their leaves will develop brown tips if they don鈥檛 have enough water or humidity.
- Tip: One nice thing about peace lilies is that they will tell you when they鈥檙e thirsty: the plant鈥檚 leaves start to droop. When the plant starts to look less 鈥減erky鈥 than usual, test the soil with your finger. If it feels dry, it鈥檚 time to water again. They can be a bit dramatic; don鈥檛 panic if they start to wilt.
- 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.
Humidity
- Peace lilies enjoy high humidity. Misting their leaves or placing their pot atop a moistened tray of gravel can help to increase humidity around the plant.
Fertilizing
- Peace lilies are not heavy feeders, so fertilize only occasionally. To encourage spring and summer growth, fertilize every 6 weeks or so with a balanced houseplant fertilizer starting in late winter.
Temperature
- Peace lilies are tropical plants; they do best in temperatures between 65掳F and 75掳F degrees (18 to 23掳C) during the day and about 10掳 cooler at night.
- Keep these plants away from the furnace or a drafty window or door.
Other Peace Lily Care Tips
- The large leaves of peace lilies tend to collect a lot of dust in the home. Gently wipe them down with a wet paper towel occasionally; a thick layer of dust can inhibit photosynthesis.
How to Get Peace Lilies to Flower
- Most often, if no flowers appear, the plant is not getting enough light. Peace lilies are very tolerant of low light, but 鈥渓ow light鈥 doesn鈥檛 mean no light! To encourage flowering, move the plant to a brighter location where it will receive bright, indirect light for at least a few hours each day.
- Green flowers, weak-looking flowers, or a general lack of flowers can also be caused by improper fertilizing. In the case of green flowers, cut back on fertilizing, as the plant may be getting too much nitrogen. In the case of weak-looking flowers or a lack of flowers, try switching to a fertilizer made for flowering plants. This type of fertilizer will have a higher amount of phosphorous, which plants need for blooming.
Wit and Wisdom
- The peace lily is said to have gotten its common name from its white flowers, which rise timidly above its green foliage and resemble white flags of peace.
- Despite the peace lily鈥檚 common name, it is not related to true lilies at all.
- The plant鈥檚 attractive blooms are also the source of its Latin name, Spathiphyllum, meaning 鈥渟pathe-leaf.鈥 The flowers consist of the spathe (the white, sheath-like leaf) and the spadix (the spike of small flowers located within the spathe).
- Peace lilies are poisonous to dogs. Learn more about houseplants that are toxic to your pets.
Photo by W. Carter/Wikimedia
Catherine Boeckmann
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Make sure that your pot has drainage holes so that the peace lily isn’t sitting in water. The excess water needs to be able to drain. Also, do not allow the container to sit in a saucer of water. Trim off any damaged flowers or leaves.
can i plant a peace lily outside in southern minnesota.... please reply
Unfortunately, you would not be able to grow peace lily year-round outside in Minnesota. As a tropical plant, it might do OK in Plant Hardiness Zone 10b to 12, but Minnesota is Zones 3 to 5. You can, however, put it outside in a pot in a shady spot with bright indirect sunlight, and keep things moist. Monitor and take the plant indoors for the season before temperatures dip below 40 degrees F. It is happiest in daytime temperatures between 68 and 85 and nighttime temperatures about 10 degrees cooler.
I just got a large piece Lilly and broke seed bud in half now white stuff is coming out . What should I do to make it better? And there are a lot of browning leaves can I cut them? Towards the bottom.
When you broke the seed bud—do you mean the central part where the flower is, and it was leaking sap? Hopefully by now, it has dried and closed over the wound. You can prune off any spent flowers at the base of the flower stalk. As to the brown leaves, you can trim off any brown leaf tips. Or, if more than the tip is affected, you can wait until a leaf has dried completely, then snip it off where the leaf stalk meets the base of the plant. To help avoid further browning, check to make sure the plant is getting proper light, water, and fertilizer.
Can i use well water for my lily?Do I have to use distilled water?
I wouldn't recommend using Distilled water... But rather Well Water that is bypass a water softener. If you have Well water you should have a spigot that bypasses the water softener.
Can Peace Lily be plant outside in Nokomis, Florida and left without care?
We have one but are going to our summer home in Kennebunk, Maine and can not take the lily.
Peace lilies in Florida are indoor plants. Keep your peace lily in a well-lit area, but out of direct sunlight. They do like damp soil, but avoid over-watering. If you can’t take this houseplant with you, you may wish to give it to a friend!
I received a peace lily after losing a loved one in October. About 10 days ago it was over watered and started to wilt. It sat in water for about 3 days before I had realized there was excess water in the pot. I drained the water and have let it dry since then but it looks worse and worse every day. The roots appear to be healthy, the soil is still moist but not excessively so. I trimmed the dead leafs yesterday, however the remaining ones practically yellowed before my eyes today. It means so much to me and I would do anything for it to recover. It was suggested that I repot it in fresh soil using pot that is a half size up, but am reading that I could stress it out even more by doing this. Is there anything else I can do to try and improve the health of my lily?
