James Burghardt
Family
Araceae
Botanical Name
Spathiphyllum
Plant Common Name
Peace Lily
General Description
Spathiphyllum is a genus of approximately 40 species with even more cultivated varieties and hybrids. Members are naturally distributed across warm, humid, tropical forests of southeastern Asia, Indonesia, Central America and northern South America. Many of the hybrids are highly prized as easy indoor plants with striking leaves and showy white flowers. They are often used as houseplants, conservatory specimens, container plants, or tropical bedding plants. Serene white blooms are the reason they are commonly called peace lilies.
All peace lilies are evergreen tender perennials. Most have upright clusters of leaves that grow directly from short rhizomes (underground rooting stems) to form slow-spreading clumps. The shiny, simple bright green leaves have long, sheathed petioles (leaf stems) and prominent leaf veins. They vary in shape from narrowly lanceolate to elliptical or oval with pointy tips.
Like all members of the aroid family, they have unusual flowers consisting of a finger-like floral column (spadix) surrounded by a white or pale green petal-like leaf (spathe). The spathe is often large, leathery and held above the foliage. The blooms are usually fragrant, long lasting and suitable for cutting. They occur mostly from winter to summer, but some hybrids have been bred to bloom longer.
Species vary widely in size, some being very small and others huge. Popular hybrids include Spathiphyllum ‘Mauna Loa’, which is a very old selection that’s tough, moderately sized and has large, lance-shaped, dark green leaves. Spathiphyllum ‘Petite’ is diminutive cultivar with narrow, dark green leaves and dainty white flowers, and Spathiphyllum ‘Sweet Pablo’ is characterized by its large, glossy leaves, which are held horizontally, and large, long-lasting white flowers.
Tropicals such as these are very frost-tender and require protection from chilly weather. Bright indirect light, high humidity and evenly moist but well-drained soil or potting mix are required for good growth. Water and fertilize regularly, but refrain from over-watering or over-feeding as both can damage root and foliage health. Outdoor plants must be shaded from intense midday sun, which can scorch leaves. Indoors, these are some of the best plants for low-light conditions. Spathiphyllums are great landscape plants for the tropics. In temperate areas grow them as houseplants or summer patio specimens.
