The lemon-lime prayer plant, also known by its botanical name, Maranta leuconeura, is one of the best indoor plants.
The Prayer Plant, including the Lemon Lime variety, originated from Brazilian tropical rainforests. That’s why humidity and consistently moist soil is its natural habitat.
The Lemon Lime Prayer plant comes with vibrant, variegated leaves that are oval-shaped, and its leaves have bright green centers and lemon-yellow edges.
Although prayer plants come in different varieties, in this article, I will only explain the lemon-lime variety, like how to grow, care for, benefits, etc.
Growing the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant
There are some common things that you need to focus on while growing a lemon-lime prayer plant or any other prayer plant, such as lightning, soil, temperature, humidity, etc.
Light requirements
Lemon lime prayer is an indoor plant, but it needs proper light to grow and stay happy. You need to place it near a window, and if you mistakenly place it in direct sunlight, it’ll scorch your plant’s leaves.
Because of its beautiful look, you can keep it in the window, kitchen, etc, but cannot compromise with light; you need to provide at least 6 hours of bright light. After that, you can keep it in your room even if the light isn’t sufficient, but not all the time.
Soil and Potting Mix
A lemon-lime prayer plant likes a well-draining potting mix that is rich in nutrition and can help it grow and thrive.
I would suggest you get all-purpose, peat-based potting soil, which is mixed with some perlite or bark chips, which is okay, too.
Watering Needs
Just like water is needed for humans, it’s also important for prayer plants, but they don’t want too much water or too little water.
So you just have to keep the soil moist and nothing more than that. During summer, one time is okay in a week, and in winter, you can provide one time in 2 weeks.
However, before watering your prayer plant, make sure the soil is dried to avoid overwatering, which can cause many problems, including yellow leaves, root rot, etc.
Temperature and Humidity Preferences
Prayer plants are oriented from Brazilian tropical rainforests; that’s why they need humidity so they can survive in a warm environment.
The ideal temperature they prefer is 65°F to 85°F. To increase humidity levels, you can consider using a pebble tray or start misting the leaves regularly.
Fertilizer and Nutrient Requirements
Fertilizer is really important for plants at least once every two to three months, especially during the growing season, such as spring or early summer.
You can feed your lemon prayer plant with a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer; you can also dilute the fertilizer to half-strength because over-fertilizing isn’t good either.
Propagating the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant
There are basically three methods of propagating the lemon-lime prayer plant, which include division, stem cutting, and leaf cutting. Let’s know them step by step:
Division
Lemon Lime Prayer Plants can be easily propagated by division.
- Firstly, you need to remove any offset or pups from its pot.
- Make sure the offset has some leaves and roots with it.
- Finally, you can sow it in different pots with fresh and well-draining potting mix.
Stem Cuttings
- Take 4-6 inch stem cuttings just below a leaf node.
- Remove the lower leaves from the stem, but make sure it has 2-3 leaves left at the top of it.
- Now you can plant this stem cutting in a well-draining potting mix
- keep them consistently moist.
Leaf Cuttings
- Take a healthy leaf with a small portion of the stem.
- Lay the leaf flat on the soil.
- After a few weeks, you’ll see a new plant.
Lemon lime prayer plant Care and Maintenance
Taking care of your prayer plant is very important, especially when you want to keep it healthy and thrive. Here is the step-by-step guide on where you have to focus on.
Pruning and training
Pruning your prayer plant on a regular basis will help your plan to maintain its shape, especially since you shouldn’t avoid pruning when you’re propagating a prayer plant.
When you’re pruning a new prayer plant, it’ll focus on new growth and prevent the plant from becoming leggy.
Therefore, every morning, you can trim off some dead or damaged leaves that have turned yellow or brownish. Besides this, you can also remove stems if they’re damaged.
Repotting and transplanting
You can report your prayer plant every 2-3 years because, over time, prayer plants’ roots get bound, which isn’t good for the plant as it can’t let it thrive and stay happy.
That’s why transplanting the whole plant with fresh soil is the best choice. Let your plant’s roots spread out.
This process will only minimize stress on the plant. However, you should report during the early summer or spring season.
Troubleshooting common issues
Here are some common issues and problems that you can face while growing a prayer plant. By following all these steps, you can prevent and troubleshoot all problems:
Leaves turning yellow or brown
Sometimes, you’ll notice your prayer plant is turning its leaves yellow. There are three reasons why: either you’re providing too much water or less water, and lastly, your plant needs nutrition.
Therefore, always make sure you are providing water in moderation. At least once a week is okay during summer. And once in two weeks is okay in winter.
However, you can touch the soil whether it is completely dry out or not. If it does, then you can provide a little water. If it doesn’t, then wait for a few hours or days because you don’t want the soil to get soggy.
Moreover, if you’re even providing water in a limited amount, and your plant is still turning its leaves yellow, then you can feed your plant with balanced liquid fertilizer.
Drooping or wilting leaves
If a lemon-lime prayer plant’s leaves start wilting and eventually dropping, it’s because your plant needs water.
That’s why you want to make sure you’re keeping your plant consistently moist but not waterlogged.
Pests and diseases
Some common pests, including spider mites, mealybugs, and scale insects, can also be problematic for a prayer plant.
To deal with all these lemon lime prayer problems or diseases, you can inspect the leaves every day and remove any damaged leaves. Besides this, you can also use insecticidal soap or neem oil.
Humidity is good for prayer plants, but make sure you don’t leave your plant in overly humid conditions because it can cause fungal diseases, including root damage.
Benefits and Uses of the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant
There are some benefits of having a lemon-lime prayer plant in a home:
Air-purifying properties
A prayer plant can help purify your room’s air. That’s why it is one of the best house plants. It has the ability to remove harmful toxins and pollutants, such as formaldehyde and benzene, from the air.
Moreover, it’s a simple concept about prayer-plants that they’ll take carbon dioxide and will give you oxygen in return.
Aesthetic appeal and decorative uses
The lemon-lime prayer plant looks very beautiful because of its vibrant, patterned leaves and its leaves look like they’re praying, as we humans do by folding our hands, so the plant folds its leaves.
However, the prayer plant folds its leaves when it responds to light, which is a really unique thing about it.
That’s the reason the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant can be used for decorative purposes or in home decor.
Medicinal or therapeutic uses
Although currently, scientists and doctors don’t use lemon-lime prayer plants for their medical properties, in a few cultures and traditions, they are used for herbal practice.
Sometimes, a prayer plant is also used for making tea because as it is a prayer plant, so people call it, it has a calming effect, which can help reduce stress, anxiety, depression, etc.
However, there is not too much scientific evidence about the medical properties of the lemon-lime prayer plant, as it is commonly famous because of its unique leaf style, which folds when responding to light as if the plant is praying.
Conclusion
The Lemon Lime Prayer Plant is one of the best household indoor plants that you can consider growing.
A prayer will not just purify the air of your room by removing some harmful toxins but will also give a beautiful look to your home as it looks amazing and is widely used for home decor.
More importantly, it is a low-maintenance indoor plant, which is very easy to care for. So, even if you are a beginner to gardening, you can still go with this plant.
Is Lemon Lime Prayer Plant toxic to cats?
No! Prayer plants are not toxic to cats, dogs, or babies, and they are not poisonous or dangerous either.
It can only prove to be toxic or dangerous if you have used pesticides or chemical fertilizers, etc, in the soil or on its leaves. Besides this, if your cat, dog, or someone mistakenly consumes those leaves or soil in too much amount, then it can be a little bit harmful.
Even if a cat or dog consumes it, then you’ll see some symptoms like vomiting, loss of appetite, etc. So, in this case, you can take your cat or dog to the doctor for further treatment.
However, cats are smart enough. They can get curious to see a prayer plant, but they won’t consume it in too much amount that they get sick.
Why are my Lemon lime prayer plant leaves curling?
There are a couple of things that you can pay attention to: your lemon-lime prayer plant leaves are curling because of under-watering or over-watering, low humidity, too cold or hot temperature, or due to any pests.
Number one, you need to provide water in moderation. Don’t give too much water and too little. Let the soil dry first.
You can increase humidity because dry air also causes curling leaves; you can use a pebble tray or moist leaves with water spray to prevent curling. Moreover, routine plant inspection and neem oil to prevent pests is a good choice.