Software
Houzz Logo Print
hzdeleted_19697995

Drooping peace lily

3 years ago

Hi there!

I think I most likely overwatered my peace lily. Wanted to know if it can be revived?

Thanks

Comments (8)

  • 3 years ago

    you can stop watering.. and see what happens..


    i dont what else you can do to a stressed plant ...


    is there a drain hole in the pot ...


    on some level.. you loved it too much.. you arent going to fix it by loving it more.. no fert.. no direct sun.. about the only thing that might work is prayer..


    ken

    User thanked ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
  • 3 years ago

    I haven’t watered for a few days now. I only watered once since receiving it and didn’t drench it either. There are a few drain holes. The growers pot was placed in a decorative pot which i added a few stones with a little water for humidity. Now it's just sitting in the growers pot only and seems to be getting worse/more droopy. 🙏

  • 3 years ago

    If the grow medium deep in the pot is nearly dry and the plant is wilting, it's almost certainly due to under-watering. If the plant wilts while you can still easily detect moisture in the grow medium, it's almost certainly due to over-watering.

    Wilting occurs when a plant's internal water pressure drops to a point low enough that the plant can no longer maintain turgidity (keep its cells full of water under pressure). Less experienced growers very commonly think reflexively that because a plant or planting wilted, it must follow that the grow medium is too dry and the plant needs watering. Clearly, if there is not enough water in the soil, logic would lead one to that conclusion.

    What might seem counter-intuitive is the fact that too much water in the grow medium also can, and does, cause wilting; this, because roots need an adequate supply of oxygen in order to function efficiently/normally. An excessive amount of water displaces air in the grow medium and a fraction of that air contains oxygen required by the roots.

    If a planting wilts, first check to see if the soil is dry. Using a wooden tell inserted into the soil all the way to the pot bottom is probably the most reliable way of checking for soil moisture and determining if it's time to water if the tell comes out dry or nearly dry, it's time to water. Ask if you're unfamiliar with using a 'tell' or want more info. If you determine the soil is dry, of course you should water unless there is reason not to. E.g., perhaps the plant needs or you want it to have a dry rest.

    If a planting wilts while you can still easily detect moisture in the medium, odds are very high that over-watering is the cause of the wilting for the reason already described above. Often, growers will report they've been watering, but the plant is still wilted, but it does perk up at night. This is because there are many small holes (stomata) on leaves through which gasses from inside the plant are exchanged with gasses from the air surrounding the plant, one of the gasses that moves out of the leaves is water vapor. In preparation for the respiration or dark cycle, special cells surrounding stomata (guard cells) close the openings through which water escapes. This helps the plant rebuild all or more often some of it's internal pressure, which often conspicuously even if not entirely reduces the degree of wilting. When you see this, you can be quite sure over-watering is in play.

    Al

    User thanked tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
  • 3 years ago

    Thanks to all! I gave my peace lily a thorough soaking, and after a few hours the leaves started to perk up!


  • 3 years ago

    A Peace Lily will completely collapse if it doesn't receive enough water (don't ask me how I know). They need a good soaking, not just a little water. It's amazing how fast they can revive once they're watered.

    User thanked woodrose77
  • 3 years ago

    They like their water and will let you know when they are getting thirsty with a slight andworsening droop to the leaves.

    User thanked socks
  • 3 years ago

    Forms of stress are first measurable in roots, so by the time the plant wilts, it will already have been under considerable levels of stress, making it best to water well before wilting occurs.


    Again, because the plant tolerates wet feet to some degree, some growers have come to believe they want or prefer soil saturation. They don't. They will perform best in an evenly moist medium that is never wet or soggy. Often an argument is mounted which goes something like "I grow my PLs in a tub of water all summer long and they do just great". Apples to oranges. Plants in a tub of water will have adapted to their roots being in water by dissolution of normal root cortex which contains parenchyma tissue, to a tissue called aerenchyma, which is airy and porous and which allows diffusion of air from above the water line ti diffuse through the top of the plants to roots. This tissue cannot readily morph back and forth at the speed with which grow media goes from wet and soggy to appropriate moist and airy. IOW, it's one or the other, not both; and, that a plant CAN grow in water doesn't mean it Can tolerate saturated media when growing under conventional container culture. It will suffer just like nearly all other plants will suffer when roots are deprived of an adequate oxygen supply via excessive amounts of water in the grow medium.

    Al

    User thanked tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)