How To Care For And Grow Your Prayer Plant
Native to: Brazil
Watering needs: Every 1-2 weeks
Lighting needs: Bright Indirect sunlight
Difficulty: Low maintenance
Great for: Adding vitality, anyone with lots of light
Pet-Safe: Yes
1.0 Choosing Your Prayer Plant
2.0 Picking The Right Spot (Lighting, Air Conditioning, Temperature)
3.0 Caring For Your Prayer Plant (Watering, Dusting, Re-potting)
1.0 Choosing your Prayer Plant
Prayer Plants are simple.
It’s Alright If You See:
Single drooping stem
A single, slightly drooping stem means that this stem found a secret pocket of sunlight and is gravitating towards it like a sunflower. In other words, nothing to worry about.
But, Watch Out For:
Yellowing, browning, or discoloration on the tops of leaves
Indicates a watering or humidity issue.
2.0 Picking The Right Spot (Lighting, Air Conditioning, Temperature)
Half of plant parenthood is choosing the perfect spot.
Lighting
For fastest growth, place your plant as close to the window as you can, with the widest possible view of the sky.
However, take care to avoid more than 2hrs of direct sunlight.
Air Conditioning
Place your Prayer Plant as far away as possible from the direct air escaping from your AC vents. The dry air may cause its leaf tips to start to brown.
Temperature
The ideal temperature for Prayer Plants, as with most indoor plants, is between 18°C - 22°C at night, and 22°C - 27°C during the day. Though they CAN tolerate lower temperatures, you'll need to REDUCE your watering drastically, as the risk of overwatering increases the lower the temperature.
3.0 Caring For Your Prayer Plant (Watering, Dusting, Re-potting)
How to keep your plant alive (and also show your love).
Watering
Maintain moist soil
Prayer Plants want their soil to be kept moist. At least once a week, touch the top layer of the soil; If it feels dry (not wet or cold), then that means it’s time to water.
Once a week, stick your finger 1 inch into the soil:
- If you feel ANY moisture, at all, wait longer before checking again.
- If the soil feels COMPLETELY DRY, then it’s time to water.
Note: the more light it gets, the more often it’ll need to be checked and watered.
Pro-tip: When checking your soil for moisture, make sure to test different parts of the soil, in case you come across a wet pocket.
Dusting
Once a month, gently wipe away any dust on your plant.
Wiping your Prayer Plant of dust with a damp rag once a month will help it soak in light and breathe through the little pores (stomata) on its leaves.
Re-potting
Leave it in its nursery pot
Leave your Prayer Plant in its nursery pot for at least one year before repotting it. It’s perfectly happy in it!
Time to re-pot
When it's time, use a high-quality potting mix and transfer your Prayer Plant into a pot that's about 1–2 inches in diameter larger than its current one (or one or two sizes up).
When in doubt, reach out to our team at hello@plntd.ae, and we’ll help you identify whether the soil bag you’re considering will work for your Prayer Plant.
Remember, always go for a pot with drainage holes.
4.0 Beginner questions
Ask away, grasshopper.
How easy is a Prayer Plant to care for?
Prayer Plants are fairly low maintenance plants:
- They like their soil to remain moist (though never soggy) and so need to be watered every 1-2 weeks. The more light they get, the more you can expect to water them.
- These plants are native to the humid tropical islands of the Philippines and love high humidity; something to combat with the dry AC air so common in the UAE. As a result, they need to be misted with water regularly to help retain their moisture (once a day is ideal!).
Like most indoor plants, Prayer Plants are a little sensitive when it comes to the chlorine and calcium found in UAE tap water, however. To combat this, make sure to:
- Leave tap water out for 24-48 hrs before using it. This allows the chlorine time to evaporate.
- Water all the way through the soil until water is dripping out the bottom of the nursery pot. This will ensure any excess build of calcium (and other minerals) is flushed out from the soil.
How much light does my Prayer Plant need?
In their natural habitat, Prayer Plants grow on forest floors and have, therefore, evolved to grow in the shade, under the canopies of tall trees.
Your Prayer Plant will thrive in similar medium-light conditions. However, like all indoor plants, the more bright indirect light it gets, the happier it will be.
Here are some guidelines to help you figure out where to place your Prayer Plant, if you live in the UAE:
- If your window is facing North, South, or West you should place it as close to your window as you can, as long as it doesn't get direct sunlight
- If your window faces South, then place your plant deeper into the room
Then, monitor your Prayer Plant's leaves for a few weeks
- If you start to see them slightly fade, then that's an indication that your plant is getting too much light — move them a little deeper into the room/away from the window
- If their leaves stay dark green, then their placement is fine and you've found a happy spot — nice!
Can I use UAE tap water to water my Prayer Plant?
Yes. Prayer Plants can be fed using UAE tap water.
However, like most indoor plants, they are sensitive to the chlorine and calcium found in the water.
To combat this, make sure to:
- Leave tap water out for 24-48 hrs before using it. This allows the chlorine time to evaporate.
- When watering your Prayer Plant, make sure to water through the soil until it is dripping out the bottom of the nursery pot. This flushes out any excess build-up of calcium (and other minerals) from the soil.
Finally, look out for tell-tale signs of too much chlorine or calcium:
- Scorched brown tips at the leaves = too much chlorine.
- White crystals on the soil = too much calcium.
Will AC harm my Prayer Plant? What temperature should I set it to?
Prayer Plants are tropical plants native to warm, humid climates.
ACs achieve the opposite results: they make the temperature colder, and the air dryer.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when setting your AC temperature and deciding where to place your Prayer Plant in a room:
- The ideal temperature for Prayer Plants, as with most indoor plants, is between 18°C - 22°C at night, and 22°C - 27°C during the day. Though they CAN tolerate lower temperatures, you'll need to REDUCE your watering drastically, as the risk of overwatering increases the lower the temperature is.
- Whenever possible, place your Prayer Plant (this applies to all plants) as far away from AC vents as possible.
- To combat the drying effect of your AC, mist your Prayer Plant with water and a mister to replicate its native climate. Once a day is ideal!
Alternatively, you can also take a shallow plate/saucer, fill it with pebbles, place some water into the saucer, and place your plant on top of the pebbles, making sure the water doesn't come in contact with the drainage holes. As the water evaporates from the saucer, it will raise the humidity around the leaves quite effectively — but make sure to keep an eye on the water and replace it regularly.
Do I have to re-pot my Prayer Plant as soon as I receive it?
In short, no.
Once you receive your plant, place it in the spot you plan to keep it in (whilst still in its nursery pot) and allow it at least 6 months (ideally 12) to acclimate to your home's temperature and light levels.
Once acclimated, you can choose to either re-pot your plant or leave it in its nursery pot.
5.0 Some Common Problems
Prayer Plants are all about aesthetic.
Browning leaves or leaf-tips
Cause 1: Underwatering
Suggestion: Time for a drink!
Cause 2: Dry environment
Suggestion: If your plant is next to an AC vent, try moving it away
Curling leaves
Cause: Underwatering
Suggestion: Time for a drink!
Yellow leaves
Cause: Overwatering
Suggestion: Allow soil time to dry out completely (sometimes this can take 2-4 weeks), then slowly re-water.
6.0 Buying Prayer Plants Online
When shopping for a plant online, look out for the following:
Height
If you're looking for a table-top plant, then go for one that's 40cm tall. A 60cm tall plant would work well on a low side-table. Plants about 1 meter or taller would work well as statement floor plants.
Note: Stated heights will always include the height of the plant AND planter.
Pot style
This is all about the vibe you're looking for, and you'll typically have a choice amongst different colors and shapes.
If you're looking for subtlety, we suggest a circular pot in white. To make more of a statement, look for contrasting shapes and colors!
Delivery
It goes without saying that your plant supplier should meticulously package all plants.
When you personally buy a plant from a store, you're able to rush it home, ensuring it stays outside for as little time as possible. But when you order online, your plant will ride-share with a lot of other plants all on their way to their new homes.
Depending on where you live, weather can play a big part in your plant's health along the way.
If possible, ask your plant shop what precautions they take to ensure your plants stay as safe as possible en route to you.
Reviews
Reading customer reviews is a good way to get an idea of the customer experience provided by the seller (here's ours, by the way), but you need to practice caution there.
Don't expect to be able to tell a fake review right away, some reviewers can be great con artists, and some negative reviews can be fake to harm the seller.
Your best bet is to zoom out and look at multiple comments from multiple categories to get a good overview of whether you can trust this company and/or their review section.
For example, look at how recent the reviews are, and how spread apart. Was there a sudden spike of comments in a short amount of time? Do they sound like they're all written by someone rehashing the same template? Do they all sound too positive to be real?
Yes, going all detective on reviews can be a chore, but Future You will thank you for it.
Returns and refund policies
Things can go wrong.
Sometimes it's no one's fault, and sometimes there's nothing anyone can do.
So the best practice is to offer (and honor) a no-questions asked return/refund policy. Check out the seller's policy before you make a purchase, so you know you're insured in case things don't work out.
You can check out our return/refund policy here.
Ready to adopt a Prayer Plant?
Your Prayer Plant can't wait to meet you — just choose a height and pot and let's introduce you two!
Popular for its bright colourful veins, Prayer Plants are a great choice for a plant-beginner looking to add some colour to a place. Prayer Plants also love the heat & humidity, and will do well in a bathroom (with a window).
