Help!!! with Peace Lily

I received this plant a year ago November-and repotted it late this summer. It was doing beautifully-yea!! I finally found a house plant I can grow-but now the tips of its leaves are turning brown(even some of the new baby leaves) and it doesn't seem too happy. It isn't nearly as full as before and is a getting scraggly. What am I doing wrong? Too much water, not enough water, too much fertilizer, too much sun???? Help!!
Kim in Colorado

Probably lack of humidity ... you can try misting the leaves. Or maybe it needs repotting .... is it cramped in the pot ? Are you watering too much? Stick your finger down in the first inch or so of soil .... is it real wet? Mine prefer to be on the dry side. I only water once every 2 weeks! I have one Very Large Variegated Peace Lily that isn't real happy right now .... leaf tips browning .... we had a cold snap and it's outside and didn't like the cold, and also I haven't been spritzing it lately - been too busy with holiday stuff! I have a few smaller solid green ones in pots around the house and in my screen room .... some of them need repotting! One of mine in about a 12" pot completely droops .... flattens out totally, when it dries out, but as soon as I water it thoroughly, it stands back up as pretty as ever.

Maybe someone else will chime in with some suggestions! Good luck and keep us posted as to the outcome.

Lin

I try to remember to water it once a week, or at least when I see it starting to droop. Can it be getting enough water and still have brown tips because of a lack of humidity? I read somewhere not to let it dry out completely so I have been trying to be more regular with the watering. What should I do about the brown tips? Can I cut them off? Sorry to have so many questions, house plants and I don't seem to get along, but I am really trying to make friends with this one! :)
Kim

Get a spray bottle, fill it with water and mist it a couple of times a day. Do you have a photo you could post? Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, so they say ... it would be helpful to see a pic of the plant to be sure what's going on.

Lin

I just received a new camera for Christmas, so I will try to get a picture to post when I get home this evening. Thanks for the help!
Kim

Most likly it is humdity. We had one in a big container a neighbor gave us. It did not have much dirt in it. It would pour or the sprinkler come on and just fill the pail time after time week after week with water . I'd push it over with my wheel chair to get the water out when my Hubby could not . It grew it bloomed. Then Nov 7 th or so 2006 when we had gardenrs pre-pare a few gardens in new yard and do trans-plant we had them trans-plant our Peace Lily in our garden bed . Right away it perk up smily happy . It now gets rained on again or hosed . It's growing happy ! If the sun comes out tomorrow I will take a picture if not the next day.
So I feel it is humidity sense we have this in Florida !
I would trim off any old damages foliage.
Happy Growing :))

KIm I did a search for growing a Peace Lily as a house plant !
This will give you some more helpful answers ! Please let us know how your plant does :))
http://www.thegardenhelper.com/peacelily.htm

Thanks so much for your help. I couldn't get a picture last night, new camera-haven't quite got it figured out yet-so I will try again this evening. The humidity issue makes sense, it so dry here and with the recent blizzard the heater has been running non-stop. I use a humidifier in the winter, and last year I had it in the living room sitting right behind the plant. This year I have had it in the bedroom, so I think I will move it back to the living room and see if that helps. The link was helpful, I fertilized it a couple of times thinking that was what it needed. Maybe I overdid it. Thanks again for the help! I will send pictures tonight.
Kim

Good link, Allison....that's about the best growing advice I've seen for Spathiphyllums.

I note that that article states that they're sensitive to fluoridated water...I've been reading about that.
We have a well, and therefore do not have fluoridated water....BUT....we have very 'limey' water, and I've always had problems with Spathiphyllums and leaf browning, too....so I've been using distilled water on my most recent purchase of a large Spathiphyllum 'Domino', and it has outlasted any of the other Spaths that I've owned so far. So, I think they're also sensitive to water with a high lime content.

I do know watering plants with distilled rob's them of needed minerals.
Our plant in the ground gets well water twice a week when needed it goes on by timer for watering plants and lawn. Our plants love it. Other times it gets rain.

Nan, don't be so sure you don't have fluoride in your water. It occurs naturally everywhere, so without testing it, you can't know. We have well water and being a dental hygienist, I gave our girls fluoride vitamins until I had the water tested. We have three times the optimum (one part per million). I stopped the vitamins, since I didn't want them to have fluorosis in their teeth. Three times the optimum isn't harmful to humans, but if a plant is sensitive to it, it could be. That being said, I water my houseplants with that same water much of the time, and it doesn't seem to hurt anything a whole lot.

I'm glad I found this thread! Sometimes DG can be daunting just because there is SO much information! I have SEVERAL peace lilies. I recieved them all since Sept 2006. They have been doing great, beautiful blooms on the biggest three, but now some of them are beginning to yellow at the ends of their leaves. I repotted a few that needed it, but the big ones don't...at least not yet. Some of the peace lilies were in dish gardens, that being said, are quite young plants.

I've been planting outside for years, but I've not had much luck in the past with houseplants. This year is going to be different!! (I hope!). I have so many plants, but I don't know the names of them. I'm going to try to ID them. I was going to post some pics, but the batteries just died in my camera. Maybe tomorrow :)

MsKatt: Yes, definately post pic's and maybe we can get some correct ID's fo you!

Hi MsKatt Well come to DG's :))
I have fount housplants enjoy just like outdoor plants Humdity. They like shower and Mist Spaying during the day. You can also place their pots on a tray, saucer of damp pebbles.
Even Winter here in Florida this week the heat is running Humdity goes down to nothing so we have to build it up.
Baths and misting will help any plants not to get spider mites or other pest dry air brings.
Happy growing !

OK-I have tried everything recommended and my poor plant is still not happy! I finally figured out how to upload pictures so I would appreciated any suggestions. The tips are still brown and it isn't nearly as full as it was. I have been watering it with bottled natural spring water and moved the humidifier right next to it. It is about 9 feet from a east facing window and 14 feet from a west facing window. As you can see, even the new leaves have brown tips.
Thanks!
Kim

Some additional pictures

What do the roots look like?

One more

Don't laugh - I am going to show my ignorance here, but how do I look at the roots?
Kim

I pulled the plant out of the outer pot and checked the bottom-I don't see any sign of the roots. Doesn't look root bound at all and none are trying to come out of the drain holes of the plastic liner. Is that what you were refering to when you asked about the roots or should I do something different.
Kim

Hi Kim

Would you mind taking a pic of the roots? I want to see if they are firm and white or brownish...

GH

Here are the roots

and another

Hi Kim-

The roots don't look rotted, which is a good thing. They appear firm and white, which is what they should look like. I don't like the looks of the soil....looks too dry and crumbly and very peaty. The soil should be moist like a wrung out sponge. Also, the roots need to fill the pot more. Generally, peace lillies prefer being rootbound to get the best blooms. The dry soil, combined with accumulated salts(from fertilizer) could be the cause of your woes. You also said that you have the plant 9 feet away from an East window? I think that's too far away. They like medium to bright light, although they are touted as low light plants. Yours is under duress and might benefit from being closer to a light source. Do you have any well draining soil that you could repot in? There are some very good articles around here somewhere from Al(tapla) on soil properties that you would find very helpful.

Just some tips for future growing- 1.) The best time to pot up is in the Spring, at the beginning of the growing season. This way, the plant enjoys the benefit of warm temps and longer daylight hours. It has time to fill the pot with roots and just grow happily. 2.) Don't fertilize after September- most plants are beginning to slow down and will soon go into a winter rest. Fertilizer at the wrong time can ruin a plant. 3.) Be careful with misting- it can spread diseases and pests.

I think the whole problem is that it's too dry. The roots look fine but the soil looks dry. I've had all my peace lilies as far away from the light as you have yours, and they've all thrived. Cut the leaves off at the base and water more frequently. Take it to the kitchen sink and put water in till it runs out the bottom. Let it drain for an hour or so and then put it back where you had it. Water it once a week -- probably with more water than you've been giving it -- and it should grow back. Keep us posted!

Peace lilies love water. I don't think you can overwater them.

I agree. More than half of the time with spathiphyllum's it's a water issue. The only time I ever over watered one was when the soil wasn't draining properly. I was able to save that plant by moving it into a new pot with better soil. With a well draining soil these plants will drink more water than you can imagine. They never cease to amaze me.

Right now I'm facing my own bizarre issue with one of these plants myself. I like to keep a few of these at work bc they are so easy to take care of. But each time I bring a plant from home to work the plant always seems to have issues uncurling its new growth leaves. Half the leaf unfurls and the rest just stays curled up like it's new. I took one of the plants doing this back home and it started growing fine again. So it's either the humidity is too low here at work, or they don't like the florescent lights. Water isn't the issue, I give them plenty and always make sure the soil is dry enough before I water again. Then again, maybe I'm not watering enough myself.