My Peace Lily lost it's peace

Well I bought a peace lily after xmas, it did good all the way through winter. However the roots were coming out the bottom of the pot it came in.. So I repotted it in a pot just barely lareger then the one it came in. Mistake #1 was buying KMART potting soil. I potted it in KMART potting soil & added some perlite and a peat moss. It started dying very quickly. So in an attempt to save it I went out and got Organic potting soil from Lowe's, which seems to be great soil. Took the peace lily out of the pot it was in, watched the roots, got rid of the kmart soil, washed the pot and repotted it. Well today I check it again to see all the leaves are turning brown and crispy. It's still green on the stems but the leaves look awful. What can I do to save it, I love this plant and its so big, I hate to lose it.
thanks
tamlamb

Is it varigated? Soil wet? Leaves curling? "T" :)

I found that varigated spaths are very sensitive to too much water. I had a similar problem with mine, so re-potted in good soil, cut back by half on the water, and it finally perked up about three months later. Cut it back to within 4" of the soil line, and let it start over.

Its not Varigated. I dont think there is to much water as I cut back on watering it. The leaves are not curling they are just turning brown and dying off.
tamlamb

This message was edited Monday, Apr 29th 1:01 PM

If it doesn't make it let me know. I'll have one for you. Mine did that when I first got it. But I've read that they like misting. Perhaps Will Creed can help on this also. Mr. Creed......are you around??????

Two of my pet peeves are fixing things that aren't broken and unnecessary repotting. These two are often one in the same.

Apparently, your spath was doing fine until you repotted it. Lots of things can go wrong when you repot: root damage or stress; soil incompatibility; poor soil composition; wrong sized pot; failure to integrate the rootball with the new soil; and failure to adjust watering schedule to the new soil volume.

Somewhere in that list is the likely cause of your plant woes. I think the best thing you can do now is to get your plant back to where it was before you repotted. In other words, remove all the added soil and put it back into its original pot or one of comparable size. Prune off all damaged foliage and resume the same watering technique that you used so successfully through the winter. It may take a month or so to recover from all the trauma and may lose some additional leaves along the way, but it should be fine in the long run.

I have written an article on the hazards and appropriate use of potting soils and repotting that I will send to anyone who sends their request to me at wcreed@HorticulturalHelp.com

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

Will Creed, Horticulturist
Horticultural Help, NYC
Email: wcreed@HorticulturalHelp.com

P.S. You may be interested in my website at www.HorticulturalHelp.com and my Indoor Plant Bulletins that I publish monthly.

Tammy, potting up one size should have been fine. These do like to be kept moist, but well drained. When did you "cut back" on watering it? Did you change the location of the plant?

Tamlamb,
I have such a terrible time with these plants too. I have had several of them over the years and have lost them all. My latest one is still alive, but no lilies since the ones that were originally there. And it was the hugest one I had ever seen. But alas, alive but small is how I would describe it now! Wish I knew the secret 'cause I really like these plants and some of them were special for sentimental reasons. Good luck with yours. Rose in IL

Tamilamb, these plants like indirect light & LOTS of water(these are the only plants I've ever seen growing wonderfully in the Betta(fish)vases and also those water crystals). I think I would take it completely out of dirt, put it into a vase filled with weak fertilizer water, and put it in indirect lighting from a window. Give it time, Remove all dead leaves. Keep it at about 70* and give it about 14 hours of dark each day if possible. GOD bless and best wishes.

Hi Leaflady

Thank you for your post.. It is very helpful as I never thought to put it in a Vase with just water, although I do have a Beta fish with some in it (slow at thinking I suppose.) I will try that.
tamlamb