Peace lilies belong to the Araceae family. They are simple yet beautiful indoor plants. They also give your house a standard eye-soothing look.
Peace lilies have big dark glossy green leaves, a spathe, and spadix. A spathe is a funnel-shaped white bract that surrounds the long spadix. And a spadix is where the flowers are born.
These specific kinds of plants thrive within 16° Celsius (60° Fahrenheit) to 21° Celsius (70° Fahrenheit). It’s necessary to keep the soil of peace lilies moist but make sure not to overwater for it may start festering the roots of the peace lilies.
Does Peace Lily Need Drainage Holes?
Peace Lily needs drainage holes. Although peace lily loves moisture, it is always necessary to have holes underneath the pot of the plant for keeping extra water drained from the soil. The holes will ensure that the moisture is balanced in the soil by draining the extra moisture.
Holes ensure to keep the soils free of extra moisture. Any kind of excessive moisture or pool forming at the bottom of the pot will allow the growth of harmful microorganisms, fester essential roots and so on.
So, it’s always necessary to keep several holes underneath the pot in order to prevent any damage to the peace lily plants.
Why Is Drainage Hole Important For Peace Lily?
Peace lilies are sensitive plants. They cannot survive under direct sun, similarly they cannot endure excessive moisture. Drainage holes are important for peace lilies for this reason and many more.
Excessive water stored at the bottom will cause the roots to rot:
You cannot always ensure you’re watering the plants in sufficient amounts every day. You can under-pour and you can overpour as well.
The lack of moisture and ignorance for a few days will cause the plant to lose life eventually by causing the petals to be brown dried up by the edges as a sign.
On the other hand, if you overwater and there’s no drainage hole under the pot, the water will be stored at the bottom of the pot.
If water is stored for a long time with no access to come out, it will surely cause the roots to rot. The plant will eventually lose life.
Holes at the bottom of the pot allow air flow:
As the soil inside the pot is congested, air flow is not an easy thing here. Only if there are a few holes underneath the pot, it will allow air flow. It will even let the gas formed inside the pot to come out by the holes.
Excess salts get flashed out of the pot through the holes:
There are many elements that can cause damage to the plant. Among all the other elements the most mentionable one is salt. It’s excess amount of salt is harmful for the plant and the forming process of the salt is very easy.
The drainage holes allow this extra amount of salt to get washed away through them.
No microorganism growth can form:
The water that has to access to come outside, allows fungal, bacterial, or any kind of microorganism growth. Such infections don’t let the plant grow, thrive, or even to survive.
So, no matter what, holes at the bottom are necessary.
Can You Plant Peace Lily Without A Drainage Hole & How To Do It?
You can definitely plant peace lilies without a drainage hole but there are certain ways to do it.
Usually the fancy decorative pots don’t come with drainage holes. And, as the peace lilies often go very well with the indoor decor, most people find it fascinating to use these no-hole pots for the peace lilies. Just follow these creative tips below.
Put Pebbles At The Bottom:
This is an effective way to plant peace lilies in a pot with no hole. Although a lot of people don’t support this process because they think that it doesn’t help. But remember, this will only work if you don’t overwater your plants regularly.
If you, however, don’t care about how much water to pour, and your plant is bound to soak excess water, the pebble at the bottom process won’t work. Always be cautious of how much water your plant is consuming.
Use A Smaller Pot With A Hole In It And Put It Inside The Decorative One With No Hole:
This actually works. All you need to do is take a pot with a hole in it and plant the peace lily in it. Now take the pot with the plant and put it inside the one with no hole.
This will allow the water to drain out but it will store inside the second pot without causing any harm to the roots of the peace lily.
What Problems Occur For Potting Peace Lily Without Holes?
You can plant peace lilies in the pot with no holes, maintaining a few tips and tricks. But in case you fail, you’ll end up compromising the health of your plant. Here’s what can happen to your peace lily if you use pots with no holes.
- Pots with no holes will not allow the extra water to drain which will result into rotten roots.
- Clogged water may cease the growth of the plant.
- It will allow fungal and bacterial growth.
- The plant will eventually lose life.
Should I Put Rocks In The Bottom Of My Peace Lily?
You should put pebbles in the bottom of the peace lily. Whenever you want to use pots with no hole, you’ll need to put small rocks or pebbles at the bottom of the pot so that the soil stays a bit upper from the bottom.
This will allow the water to drain from the soil and store in between the pebbles.
If your pot has no holes, do not water your plant often. There’s an untold benefit of this process.
Whenever the extra water will drain from the soil and store around the pebbles or rocks and you’ll not water the plants often, the roots will pull in water from the bottom where the water is stored.
So, water your plants only a little everyday. If you accidently overwater your plant, do not water the next time, let the plant process the extra water and let the moisture be balanced.
What Size Pot Does A Peace Lily Need?
A peace lily is an indoor plant and doesn’t grow much big. That is why peace lilies do not need much bigger pots. Pots only about 10 inches in diameter are perfect for peace lily growth.
The peace lily is anyway a small plant and its roots don’t go deep inside the soil. So, this particular type of plant does not need a bigger place for the roots to spread.
Do Peace Lilies Need Distilled Water?
Peace lilies are not good with chemicals. Any kind of harsh chemicals that come through the tap water will cause damage to the health of the peace lilies. Distilled water on the other hand will be suitable for your peace lily.
Rain water or distilled water is what your peace lily needs to thrive. If in any way tap water is your only way, all you need to do is, let the tap water stay still for several hours and the chemicals will sit at the bottom.
Now you can use the water, almost distilled, and less harmful to your peace lilies.
Does Peace Lily Like Moist Soil?
Peace lily loves moisture. So, yes, peace lily loves moist soil. It has been mentioned before that peace lily thrives between the temperature of 16° to 21° Celsius. Meaning, neither too cold, nor too hot temperature should you put your peace lily in.
Moist soil allows the plant to stay hydrated and spontaneous giving the plant shine. However, overwater will only cause the peace lilies to excessive transpiration. Hence, your peace lily will be left with lesser longevity.
Can You Overwater Peace Lily?
No! You cannot overwater peace lily. Peace lilies may love moisture, excessive water will only interrupt their natural growth.
Overwatering is harmful for not only water lilies but most of the potted plants. Because, water gets stored at the bottom without you even realizing and then you water your plants again which forces the essential roots to rot and allows bacterial, fungal infestation.
So, try to keep the environment around your peace lilies comforting and do not overwater them. Water only when you’ll notice that the soil has dried up and it needs water other than your routine watering.
What Happens If You Overwater A Peace Lily?
The exact same things happen to peace lilies that happen to every other plant if you overwater. And these are-
- The roots getting rotten
- The growth of harmful microorganisms
- No airflow
- The harmful elements cannot pass through and come out.
- The transpiration rate rises higher
Final Thought:
Overwatering the plants is a regular case although this is very harmful for the peace lily. Pots with holes are like the active solution to the overwatering problem. To save the plants from demise, use pots with holes and save yourself the effort of cleaning the pots often.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Common Peace Lily Problems and Solution?
Can a Peace Lily Grow From Seed?
Is Peace Lily a Succulent? Is It Perennial?