Wikimedia Commons
Marantaceae
Prayer Plant Flower
Maranta leuconeura
Devotion and gratitude.
- Family
- Marantaceae
- Genus
- Maranta
- Native to
- Brazil, South America
- Bloom season
- Spring, Summer
- Type
- perennial
- Height
- 6-12 in
- Sunlight
- indirect light to partial shade
- Soil
- moist, well-drained, peat-based
- Water
- moderate to high
- Hardiness
- 11-12
- Lifespan
- perennial
Did you know
- The leaves fold upward at night like hands in prayer, driven by changes in water pressure in a swollen joint called the pulvinus.
- Flowers are rare on indoor plants, but when they appear, they are small, two-lipped, and surprisingly delicate.
- The leaf movement is called nyctinasty and is thought to prevent rainwater from pooling on the leaves and encouraging fungal growth.
- Arrowroot starch, used as a thickening agent in cooking, comes from a closely related species in the same genus.
- The intricate herringbone pattern on the leaves of the variety 'Erythroneura' has made it one of the most collected houseplants worldwide.
Color meanings
0
thankfulness
1
devotion
2
reflection