Houseplant Identification and Care Tips: Prayer Plant (Maranta Leuconeuria)
Received this friend as a going away gift. Can you help me? What kind of plant is it and what type of care?
Hi Kari,
Prayer Plant Maranta
Your plant is a Prayer Plant (Maranta Leuconeura). Here are some care tips on how to grow a Prayer Plant.
Light: Prayer Plants do well in medium to high light, but no direct sun. When there is not enough light, the leaves of a Prayer Plant close at night and do not fully open during the day. When a Prayer Plant gets too much light, the color in the leaves starts to fade.
Water: Keep the soil of a Prayer Plant moist but never soggy. Unlike most houseplants, a Prayer Plant does not like to dry out before you water.
Fertilizer: A Prayer Plant is an acid loving houseplant. Feed a Prayer Plant with a basic houseplant food like Miracid, at ½ the recommended strength, every two weeks in the spring and summer. It’s not necessary to fertilize a Prayer Plant in the winter and fall. A Prayer Plant will love your extra tea.
Temperature: A Prayer Plant prefers normal household temperatures between 60-80 degrees. Lower temperatures can damage the leaves.
Humidity: Since a Prayer Plant likes a very humid environment, the humidity in ours homes is often too low. Increase the humidity around a Prayer Plant by grouping plants together, putting a small humidifier or bowl of water near the plant, or setting a Prayer Plant on a tray filled with water and small stones. Be sure the Prayer Plant is sitting on the pebbles and not in the water.
