A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2002 Spath is droopy...help!

I have a Spath that I bought over 2 years ago. Right after I bought it, it began to show signs of severe overwatering and the leaves all began to die. I pruned it back so that only 3-4 leaves remained, and dubbed it my "stick plant".
After the winter, the leaves began to grow back, and it is now a full plant again. Earlier this summer it even produced two lillies.... which lasted a while but eventually stopped. Since then, the plant leaves have gotten too big for the stems, and it droops within three days of being watered. I have tried fertilizer, but it did not work. It is in a northern facing window, and gets direct sunlight for @ 3 hours a day in the afternoon. It generally seems happy, but the leaves are just way to big for the thin stems... the stems just can't support the weight.
What can I do to bring this plant back to good health so that it will flower again?
Thanks!
Christine

Spaths don't require much light at all, artificial light usually is more then enough. So I would begin by taking it out of the area where you have it, and put it in the middle of a room away from any ventilation ducts. Then you might need to check to see if it is root bound. Spaths are notorious for becoming root bound. If so just move it to a pot about an inch larger, and cut into the roots when you trans plant it. Also don't give it a high nitrogen based fertilizer,( the 1st of the 3 numbers on the fert package) as that promotes top growth.
Don't let it totally dry out between waterings but don't let it stay damp either. Hope this helps!

Mike

Hi Christine,

When a peace lily droops it is almost invariably because the soil has become too dry. This is a plant that is pretty hard to overwater. It is quite possible that yours needs a thorough watering every 2 to 3 days. Try that and I suspect that you will see an improvement.

As an alternative, you can move your plant into a pot one size larger. However, repotting will deter any flower production. Peace lilies must be quite potbound to flower. Think about it: yours stopped flowering after you repotted; then it started to flower again recently after it had become potbound once again.

My advice is to keep it in the same pot, but water more frequently.

BTW, a north-facing window is fine for peace lilies, as the success of your plant amply demonstrates. Keep it where it is!