Will Peace Lily Grow In Water? (How To Care+Pros & Cons)

Peace Lily is a favorite among all indoor plants because of its evergreen leaves and low maintenance. When a peace lily is grown in water, it adapts to an extreme growing condition with multiple small roots that feed the plant. Just like in soil, Peace Lilies can be easily grown in water too.

Peace Lilies cannot be grown by leaf or stem cuttings. So while growing them in water, divide a plant with good roots from the existing mother plant and use the divided plant for growing it in water. Unlike the soil, peace lilies growing in water will only survive for 12-15 months.

If you wish to grow Peace Lily in water, continue reading this article to know how to grow Peace Lilies in water and take care of them.

How to grow Peace Lilies in water?

The best way to grow Peace Lilies in water is by division. It is one of the easiest methods.

Peace Lilies cannot be grown by stem or leaf cuttings, and growing from seeds will take a long time to develop into mature plants. And for division, you need a matured plant with developed crowns.

If you want to purchase a Peace Lily for growing in water, choose a plant already growing in water.

The root system of this type of plant has already adapted to the method of growing in water, so it will be easier to divide and grow them in the water again.

Growing Peace Lilies in water will grow as good as it grows in soil. The only disadvantage is that they will not last as long compared to the ones grown in soil.

In soil, the plant can grow for at least 4 to 5 years. But in water, it will only remain for one year.

If you want, you can transfer the peace lily to soil anytime. It will grow equally good in the soil as it was growing in water.

Let us check the ingredients needed for growing peace lilies in water:

• Glass jar: Using a glass jar is a good choice as it will help you see the roots’ progress and condition. It is not mandatory. You can use any vase of your choice.
• Water: The plant will receive all the nutrients from the water. Make sure to use good quality water. Avoid using tap water that contains chlorine, fluorine, and other hard minerals, which might harm the plant.
• Plastic stopper: The purpose of using this is to ensure that the plant is still in its place at the container’s mouth. But if you are using a small glass container with a narrow mouth, you might not need the stopper.
• Garden shears: You must use sharp and sterilized scissors or pruners to make a clean cutting to separate the crowns from the mother plant or remove the injured and damaged roots from them. Blunt cutting might give rise to diseases.

Now let’s talk about the ways to grow the Peace Lilies in water.

Choose a healthy plant

You must choose a good matured quality Peace Lily for growing in water.

Before dividing, keep certain things in mind:

• The plant should be mature: Since you are dividing a small plant from the mother plant, allow the plant to mature before dividing and grown easily in water. Along with being mature, the plant should be healthy.
• Examine the plant: Check the plant very well, especially the roots. Healthy roots will allow the plant to thrive. If there are rotten roots, prune them off with sterilized scissors very carefully, without hurting the other healthy roots.
• Make a clean cut:

1. While dividing the plant by separating crown sections, make a clean-cut without hurting the crowns or roots. If the cut is not clean, then the plant won’t grow well.
2. Make sure that the crowns have few roots and a couple of leaves.

Steps to grow Peace Lily in water

1. Take a glass jar or container filled with water. Do not use tap water. Use room temperature and distilled water. You can also use collected rainwater.
2. Use the plastic stopper to make sure that the plant remains in its place at the mouth of the jar. Create a hole at the center of the stopper. The stopper will hold the plant in its position.
3. Now, gently place your healthy divided Peace Lily into the hole of the plastic stopper. Let the roots get into the container. Make sure that the roots are entirely immersed in water. And the other parts are outside water.
4. Fertilize the Peace Lilies to keep them healthy. Pour few drops of liquid fertilizers every 2 weeks to keep them thriving well. Change the water every two weeks. Ensure that the roots remain in the water as drying them will harm the plant and kill them.
5. Peace Lilies do not like direct sunlight at all. Keep the jar in a place where it will get indirect light. They can grow well in low light also, which is why they are the most common houseplants. You can also use grow lights for them. 
6. Do not allow the base of the plant to touch the water. Only the roots should be touching the water, whereas you should keep the base above water to prevent them from getting damp.

How to take care of peace lily in water?

The healthy growth of Peace Lily in water is based on how you will take care of them. While growing in water, they need adequate light, temperature, humidity, water, and fertilizer.

Water 

First, speaking of the quality, you should avoid using tap water as it contains harmful minerals.

Tap water contains chlorine, fluorine, bicarbonates, and other hard minerals that will affect the plant, beginning with browning and yellowing the leaves. You can use distilled water or collected rainwater as neither contains any minerals. 

Even if you tend to use tap water, you should allow the water to sit overnight. It will let the chemicals evaporate into thin air, leaving the harmless water behind. You can use this water.

Change the water of the Peace Lilies once in 1 or 2 weeks. The one merit of growing Peace Lily in water is that you do not have to water your plant regularly. 

Also read: How Often Should A Peace Lily Be Watered? (Peace Lily Water Requirements)

Light

Peace Lilies do not enjoy direct sunlight. They will grow very well under indirect light. The reason this plant is a favorite houseplant is its tolerance to low lights.

Keep your plant near the north or west-facing window. This direction will give your plant adequate sunlight, and the rays will not be direct or intense.

You can also grow these plants under grow lights. 

Also read: What Kind Of Light Does A Peace Lily Need? (Peace Lily Light Requirements)

Fertilizer

As you are growing the Peace Lilies in water, liquid or water-soluble fertilizer is the only option. Try using organic liquid fertilizer for your plant.

Fertilize your peace lily during the spring and summer. During the winters, you can avoid using fertilizers. 

For making organic fertilizers, use vegetables and fruit peels to turn them into liquid in a food processor, and then you can use them as fertilizers.

Fertilizing your plant once every 6 weeks will work great for them. If you find that the leaves have brown tips, you may be fertilizing your plant too much. 

You do not have to fertilize them too much as they are low feeders.

Pour few drops of fertilizer into the water every time while changing the water of the container.

Also read: What Kind Of Fertilizer Does A Peace Lily Need? (Peace Lily Fertilizer Ratio)

Temperature

Belonging to the tropical regions, these plants will survive the same temperature as human beings. The ideal temperature for Peace Lilies ranges between 65-85°F. During the night, the plant can tolerate a drop of 10°F.

Keep the room temperature of your plant in such a range. Avoid exposing them to cold drafts. If you keep them too close to doors or windows that are frequently closed and opened, remove them from such spots.

Keep the peace lily a few feet away from the window to avoid direct sun and cold winds. If you have placed it on the balcony, bring it indoors to protect it from cold drafts.

Keep your plant away from heaters, radiators, or air conditioners. The air coming out from these devices will affect the peace lily.

Also read: How To Care For Peace Lily In Winter? (Peace Lily Winter Care)

Humidity

Peace lilies need humidity above 60% to thrive well. However, while growing them indoors, providing them with such high humidity will not be possible, as it will be uncomfortable for humans. But, they need to be provided with at least 50% humidity to thrive well.

However, while growing Peace Lilies in water, humidity might not be an issue for the plants, as the water will maintain the right humid environment for the plant.

Also read: Do Peace Lilies Need Misting? (+Ideal Humidity)

Pests

Unlike other houseplants, Peace Lilies do not easily get attracted by pests. Mostly, spider mites, aphids, and mealybugs are the culprits. Give your plant a daily observation to watch out for pests. 

If you find any such signs, clean the plant carefully and spray some insecticides to get rid of them. Neem oil is an excellent option for treating the plant with pest or fungus infestation.

Also read: Do Peace Lily Attract Bugs? (Identification+How ToGet Rid Of Them)

Toxicity

Peace Lilies are said to be poisonous for both animals and humans. If you have pets or small children in your home, keep the plant out of their reach.

After dealing with Peace lilies, do not forget to wash your hands properly as it might release crystals that irritate the skin.

Also read: Are Peace Lily Toxic? (Cats, Dogs, Rabbit & More)

Advantages and disadvantages of growing Peace Lily in water

Growing Peace Lilies in water comes with both advantages and disadvantages. Let’s look into each of them in brief:

Advantages

• Repotting is not needed. But if you want to change the container, repotting the plant is very easy. Just choose a container with the ideal size, depending on the size of the plant, fill it with water, and put the plant into it. Only roots should be submerged.
• You have to care less about watering or humidity. Growing Peace Lilies in water can take care of both the requirements very well.
• Growing Peace Lilies in water will attract very few pests. Your plant might not have any pests at all if taken good care of.
• While growing Peace Lilies in soil, there is the stress of overwatering the plant and root rot issues. But in water, there is no such fear. The roots can grow better in water than soil.

Disadvantages

• A peace lily growing in water will take a lot of time to grow as it might not get as much nutrients and oxygen as the one growing in soil.
• You must change the water frequently, and it might be a bit difficult job as it can have the risk of damaging the plant while taking them frequently. Along with that, a lot of water gets wasted in this process.
• Growing Peace Lilies in water might give rise to the risk of bacteria and algae formation around the roots and stems, which can cause root rot. Once this happens and starts increasing, the plant fails to absorb nutrients and dies.
• Peace Lilies grow in the soil in their native land. So it might be difficult for them to grow in water. 

Growing Peace Lilies is a time-consuming process. So, be patient, take care of their needs constantly, and watch the plant progress daily.

In water, the plant will remain alive for a year. If you want your Peace Lilies to survive for more than a year, you can transfer them to potting soil after they have grown enough in the water and take care of them.

FAQ

What kind of fertilizer is ideal for Peace Lilies while growing in water?

A water-soluble fertilizer with an NPK ratio of 10:15:10 will work great for the Peace Lilies growing in water. Put one-quarter of strength every week into the water to provide the nutrients.

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Ref: ScienceDirect, NCBI, University of Vermont, Nationalgeographic, NC state university, University of Florida, The University of Arkansas, Queensland Government.