Plant Encyclopedia
 
houseplant

Prayer Plant

Maranta leuconeura

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Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura) at Ted Lare Design and Build

Prayer Plant foliage

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Height:  12 inches

Spread:  12 inches

Sunlight:  partial shade  full shade 

Description:

A stunning plant producing leaves with striking color patterns; an excellent indoor accent plant; leaves close upward at night resembling praying hands; flowers rarely appear on houseplant specimens

Features & Attributes

Prayer Plant's attractive oval leaves emerge chartreuse, turning dark green in color with distinctive burgundy spots and tinges of light green throughout the year on a plant with a round habit of growth.

This is an herbaceous houseplant with a more or less rounded form. This plant may benefit from an occasional pruning to look its best.

Planting & Growing

When grown indoors, Prayer Plant can be expected to grow to be about 12 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 12 inches. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 5 years. This houseplant performs well in both bright or indirect sunlight and strong artificial light, and can therefore be situated in almost any well-lit room or location. It prefers to grow in average to moist soil. The surface of the soil shouldn't be allowed to dry out completely, and so you should expect to water this plant once and possibly even twice each week. Be aware that your particular watering schedule may vary depending on its location in the room, the pot size, plant size and other conditions; if in doubt, ask one of our experts in the store for advice. It is not particular as to soil type or pH; an average potting soil should work just fine.

There are many factors that will affect the ultimate height, spread and overall performance of a plant when grown indoors; among them, the size of the pot it's growing in, the amount of light it receives, watering frequency, the pruning regimen and repotting schedule. Use the information described here as a guideline only; individual performance can and will vary. Please contact the store to speak with one of our experts if you are interested in further details concerning recommendations on pot size, watering, pruning, repotting, etc.

-- THIS IS A HOUSEPLANT AND IS NOT MEANT TO SURVIVE THE WINTER OUTDOORS IN OUR CLIMATE --

 
 
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