Although caring for prayer plants is simple, gardeners are not primarily drawn to it. These are some of the best houseplants for giving your decor a pop of color and mind-blowing elegance.
These tropical plants feature oval, bright-green leaves with red-colored veins arranged in a distinctive pattern almost as lovely as stained-glass windows. Although the plants occasionally produce small white or purple flowers, the real attraction is their foliage.
So, do you want to own a prayer plant but need help caring for it?
Do not worry because I am here to assist you. I’ll go over everything you need to know about how to care if a praying plant in this blog post.
Let’s proceed, shall we?
How Do You Keep a Praying Plant Alive?
1. Prayer Plant Watering
Because prayer plants are indigenous to swampy or wet tropical rainforests, their soil must always be moist but not drenched. For a good drink, water thoroughly and let any extra run off the bottom.
If your prayer plant is in the spring or summer, water it thoroughly whenever the upper inch of the soil feels dry.
You can water it 2 to 3 times per week. How often do you water the praying plant in the winter and the fall? You can reduce watering during these climatic conditions to 1-2 times per week.
It’s crucial to remember that prayer plants are delicate to fluoride in tap water, so use distilled water or, better yet, rainwater.
2. Prayer Plant Fertilizer
It takes little fertilizer to care for a prayer plant. Between early spring and the end of the growing season, fertilize your plant every 2 weeks. Keep in mind that fertilization is seasonal.
Therefore, unless the plant produces new growth, avoid fertilizing in winter.
Use water to dilute liquid fertilizer before applying it to indoor plants. Use half of the suggested amount of fertilizer with that amount of water. Your plant will develop slowly or not at all if you use inadequate fertilizer, while too much fertilizer can result in brown leaves or even the plant’s death.
3. Avoid Direct Sunlight
Prayer plants do best in warm, shady environments with bright indirect sunlight rather than direct sunlight. You should give the plants relatively low light, controlled by either destination or some cover.
For instance, it’s ideal to be next to or right in front of a north or east-facing window. Don’t put them in darkened areas because the leaves won’t be fully open in the day if they don’t get enough light. If you notice the plant’s leaves start to fade in color, it’s a sign that it’s getting too much sun.
4. Ensure that the Humidity is Right
Prayer plants may need a humidifier to maintain a moist growing environment when they’re grown outside of their native growing regions and hardiness zones.
A dry environment can result in brown tips on the leaves. Because bathrooms are typically more humid than other rooms in a house, they make good places for prayer plants.
The plant can be moist on a humidity tray or by splashing its leaves with distilled water. Keep in mind that leaving it submerged in water would cause root rot.
5. Controlling Pests in Praying Plants
Even with nearly perfect prayer plant maintenance, you might encounter some undesired houseplant pests. The most common pests on these plants are spider mites, mealybugs, and thrips.
The plant will turn into a spider mite magnet if the soil in the pot dries out. If you start noticing tiny black dots on your prayer plant, that could mean that spider mites have taken over.
Spider mite-infested leaves can also have dry spots that are yellow or brown and covered in white webbing.
The good news is that if you take better care of your plant, you should be able to avoid spider mites because they don’t like the high humidity necessary to keep a prayer plant happy.
6. Repotting when necessary
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 constant watering to maintain the soil moist.
You shouldn’t have to move prayer plants frequently, though, as they prefer to be somewhat rootbound.
7. Best Temperatures for Praying Plants
The ideal temperature range for these tropical plants is between 65 and 70 °F. Extreme temperatures will kill them, turning their leaves dark.
Too-cold temperatures can render the prayer plant vulnerable to fungal infections and leaf loss. If you leave this plant close to an air conditioner in your house, be cautious because the heat may end up causing the plant to wilt.
Wrapping Up
These plants are relatively easy to care for them. Make sure you’ve applied the advice I’ve given you. Once you learn how to take care of a praying plant, I can guarantee you will enjoy them.
