Dry air, tap water minerals, or overfeeding. Raise the humidity, try rainwater, and ease off the feed. Trim tips cosmetically if you like.

Cold damage from a draught or a chilly windowsill. Move it somewhere steadier and above 16°C — new growth will come through clean.

Care guide

Peace Lily

Q: Yellow leaves

Overwatering or old age of individual leaves. Check the soil isn’t staying soggy; the odd yellow leaf on a healthy plant is just natural turnover.

Q: Green flowers

Too much feed or the bloom is simply ageing. Flowers naturally green as they age — snip spent ones at the base. Reduce feeding if new blooms open green.

Spathiphyllum spp. and hybrids

Elegant white blooms, glossy leaves, and absolutely no shame about wilting theatrically the moment they are thirsty — then bouncing straight back. This guide covers the commonly grown Spathiphyllum species and hybrids sold as peace lilies.

At a glance

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Light Bright shade Water Check weekly Humidity Average–high Temperature 16–24°C Feeding Monthly, Apr–Sep Pet safety Toxic to cats & dogs Mature size 30 cm–1 m, by variety

Just arrived?

Welcome home! A little settling-in is completely normal — here’s what to know in week one.

Drooping or leaf drop can have several causes. Check the compost, drainage and growing conditions rather than assuming it is only travel stress.
Keep a healthy plant in its nursery pot while it settles. If it keeps wilting, the compost stays waterlogged or roots look damaged, check the cause rather than waiting a fixed number of weeks.
Follow the watering advice for this plant below. Check the compost first and let excess water drain before returning the nursery pot to its cover.

Light

One of the better flowering houseplants for indirect or lower-light positions — it flowers best in bright, indirect light but stays handsome in shade. Keep it out of direct sun, which yellows and scorches the leaves.

Watering

Keep the compost lightly moist, with good drainage. Check it regularly and water when the surface has dried, then let excess water drain away. If the plant wilts, check the compost before watering: dry compost may need a drink, but wet compost calls for a drainage check, not more water.

The dipstick check

Slide a wooden stick or skewer a few centimetres into the soil.

Pull it out and look: damp soil clinging on means hold off.

Use the watering advice for this plant to decide whether it is ready for a drink. When you water, let the excess drain.

Humidity & temperature

It’s a tropical understorey plant, so it appreciates a bit of humidity — bathrooms and kitchens are happy homes. Keep it above 16°C and away from cold draughts, which stop it flowering.

Feeding

Feed monthly from April to September with a balanced houseplant feed at half strength — peace lilies are light feeders and overdoing it browns the leaf tips.

Repotting & size

Repot in spring when roots densely fill the nursery pot or watering becomes difficult, going up just one size. Peace lilies tolerate being slightly snug, but do not need to be rootbound to flower. A standard peat-free houseplant mix is ideal.

Something wrong?

Most problems are fixable — find the symptom below.

Whole plant wilting

Cause

Dry compost is one possibility; excess water and poor drainage can also cause wilting.

Fix

Check the compost a little below the surface. If dry, water thoroughly and allow it to drain. If wet, hold off watering, empty any water in the cover pot and check the drainage. If wilting continues, investigate the roots and growing conditions.

No flowers

Cause

Not enough light, or the plant is between flowering flushes.

Fix

Move it somewhere brighter (still out of direct sun) and be patient — flowers come in waves, mainly spring and summer.

Brown leaf tips

Cause

Dry air, tap water minerals, or overfeeding.

Fix

Raise the humidity, try rainwater, and ease off the feed. Trim tips cosmetically if you like.

Yellow leaves

Cause

Overwatering or old age of individual leaves.

Fix

Check the soil isn’t staying soggy; the odd yellow leaf on a healthy plant is just natural turnover.

Green flowers

Cause

Too much feed or the bloom is simply ageing.

Fix

Flowers naturally green as they age — snip spent ones at the base. Reduce feeding if new blooms open green.

Black-edged leaves

Cause

Cold damage from a draught or a chilly windowsill.

Fix

Move it somewhere steadier and above 16°C — new growth will come through clean.

Meet the plant

Spathiphyllum

The white ‘petal’ isn’t a flower at all — it’s a modified leaf called a spathe sheltering the true flower spike.
It’s one of the few houseplants that flowers happily in lower light.
Its wilt-and-recover habit makes it a great communicator - though the leaves contain irritating calcium oxalate crystals and should be kept away from pets.