Peace lilies, renowned for their striking white flowers known as spathes and glossy green leaves, can bloom for months once they start. However, getting them to bloom initially is a bit of a challenge. Plant expert Hannah Rowson from J. Parker's says that two conditions must be met for peace lily care - lighting and feeding.
She explained: "To encourage blooms on your peace lily, meet its lighting and feeding conditions, and when ambient temperatures start to rise in the spring, you should start to see blooms.". She also emphasised the importance of feeding houseplants, suggesting steeped banana skins as an excellent homemade fertiliser, although any balanced fertiliser will also work.
Banana skins are beneficial for indoor plants due to their high potassium content, which enriches the soil. There are several ways to use banana skin as fertiliser, including making a peel powder, banana tea, or simply embedding the fruit itself. Bananas are readily available at supermarkets like Tesco for as little as 16p each, and using them this way ensures no food waste.
The expert added: "The general rule of thumb is to fertilise your plants once every two to three waterings in spring and summer. "This should be reduced back to as low as every four waterings when the growing season is over towards the end of autumn and winter.".
The green-thumbed expert shared some sage advice: "However, this all depends on the conditions of your plant. If it is growing fast, you can give it a bit more plant food.". She also stressed the importance of lighting, advising to place them in bright, indirect light to avoid any potential scorch damage which can occur if they're left basking in direct sunlight during those scorching summer months.
Hannah continued, "They will benefit from a chunky soil mix with water-retaining properties as they will prefer an evenly moist soil.". She pointed out a tell-tale sign for watering: "Peace lilies will start to droop or wilt when they need water, so this is a good indication that you need to flood the soil with water until it drains out of the bottom.".
