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Help recovering peace lilies?

6 years ago

Hi, I had a friend take care of my plants while I was away for a couple weeks - I'm sure he did his best but they sustained an unbelievable amount of damage IMO, especially for peace lilies. A lot of dried leaves, some brown and yellow (mostly around the outer edge of the plants), and with one the leaves are drooping a lot like it really needs water but the soil was already damp when I picked it up, so maybe the problem was that they were overwatered (they were all damp when I picked them up).
I was hoping for any and all advice you can give me regarding helping the plants recover. I already trimmed the leaves with sterilized scissors that seemed way beyond recovery. Please see the pics here (trimmed leaves, followed by worst-looking plant, followed by second worst-looking):
https://imgur.com/a/7roaK
Also, any ideas on how long they will take to recover? They looked great when I dropped them off but they look terrible now (one of them at least - and all of them looked MUCH worse than the pictures before I trimmed the leaves), and am curious about this question also. Not just to look healthy again but to regrow new leaves to replace those that were cut.
Thanks!

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Comments (5)

tropicbreezent
6 years ago
I've posted the photos below to make it easier for people to see them. To me it looks like they were left too dry. The withering of the leaves seem to indicate that rather than overwatering. It looks like the plant is recovering now so you just have to wait for it to fill out again. But it should be okay.
Karen S. (7b, NYC)
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Photos of all the removed leaves don't really tell anything.

Have you asked the sitter friend what they did? How often they watered?

Could anyone have dumped anything else it there, like old coffee or cigarette ashes or something like that (often happens in offices, but I got impression this was your home).

Hard to assess recovery time w/out any idea of what actually happened (& I grow 3 of these, 2 at home, 1 at office).
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This plant is very susceptible to high levels of dissolved solids in the soil solution (accumulations of salt from tap water and fertilizer), so it's important that you use a soil that allows you to water copiously to flush the soil of salts w/o risking root rot, and the soil should remain stable between repots or divisions (ask if you need help). Watering with distilled water, water from the dehumidifier, or room temp snow melt is very helpful for this plant. Fertilize more frequently at low doses, and be very sparing with fertilizer in winter while the plant rests. 3:1:2 ratio fertilizers like 24-8-16 or 9-3-6 work very well. Very bright diffused (like a full sun location, but diffused through a sheer curtain) or very bright indirect light is best, and temperatures 68-85*. No sudden chills or cold drafts, please. Al
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If you had to soak the soil for it to accept water, it had gotten so dry it was hydrophobic. That means the soil is not able to accept moisture. The pot should be heavy when wet, when it becomes lightweight again, you know the soil is dry. You may want to consider a different type of soil, something more chunky, for your plants that is not composed primarily of peat (assuming your current soil is from what you've described.) Peat is difficult to moisten when dry, takes a long time to dry when you do get it moist (which can cause roots to rot,) and can get packed so tightly in a root ball that there is no air and, as you've seen, is hydrophobic. All of this adds up to being very difficult for plants to survive. In the meantime, try not to let the plants get to that degree of dryness, but don't go so far in the other direction that they are constantly soggy.
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You've probably discovered that it is just water stressed (wilted). It should come out of it on its own if you didn't damage the roots too badly. To ease the stress, enclose it in a clear plastic bag - maybe even a garbage bag - to keep the humidity high until it rebounds.
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"We are not over watering but the soil always seems wet" is a self contradicting statement. (I'm 40 mph over the speed limit, but I'm not driving too fast.) If the soil always seems wet we can make 2 observations: A) From the plant's perspective, the soil is likely inappropriate. B) You're over-watering. When the soil is full of water, it can't be full of air, which the plant needs for roots to function normally. Absorption of water is an energy driven process which requires the plant to 'burn' food in the presence of oxygen to drive the process. Limited amounts of oxygen = limited ability to take up water = loss of internal water pressure (turgidity) = wilting. You probably notice a little perking up of the foliage at night, yes? I think you're in a position where you can learn how to turn around most of your growing headaches, but before we head in that direction, I'll wait to see how you answer Goldstar's questions and what you have to say. Al
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
The photo of the trimmed leaves I thought would provide useful info as to the condition of the plants when I got them back. He did say he was away for a week but I normally water them every 7-10 days so I didn't think it would be a problem. He probably didn't water them as soon as he returned so they got way too dry. Nothing else but water, they were at his apartment and he lives alone.
tropicbreezent
6 years ago
I had a friend water some plants while I was away. When I came back they were withered and dead but the potting soil was wet. They were watered just before I got back, probably for the first time. Some people just aren't plant people.
Ekor Tupai
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Yup. Agree. We need other plant people to take care of our plants, or maybe pay nearby nursery is worthed to take care of our expensive plants.

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