Family: Araceae
Common name: Peace lily, Spath
A favorite garden plants, whether indoors or outdoors, peace lilies are now grown all over the world. They belong to the same family as Anthuriums, and are technically not lilies, though they are called so. Peace lily plants grow to a height of 2-3 feet with broad, dark green leaves that make the plants look beautiful even without the blooms.
The flowers are elongated and yellowish-white, surrounded by a white or light green bract, which is a modified leaf that protects the flowers. These flowers look very similar to those of Anthurium, but peace lilies are distinguished by their white bracts. Flowers look beautiful even before they open, with pristine white, long buds that gently unfurl like a flag.
Peace lily plants are very low-maintenance and can go for couple of weeks without water. It’s ok to wait for the leaves to droop before watering them, since they prefer under-watering to over-watering. They are said to remove toxins in the air according to NASA’s clean air study, making it a preferred indoor plant.
They grow well and flourish indoors, but blooms will not be as abundant as that of a plant growing in the sun. Peace lily leaves contain oxalate crystals like those of Dumb cane, and are toxic to cats, dogs and small children. So if you have little children or pets at home, it is better to keep these plants out of their reach.
Peace lily plants don’t need a lot of fertilization, only once or twice a year. What more could an amateur gardener ask for?! Even if you forget to water the plants for a long while, and the leaves droop over the edge of the pot, they will revive very quickly if you drench the soil with water and spray some water on the leaves.
Propagation is by splitting plants at the roots.
