Last Updated on April 14, 2022 by Admin
The Lemon Lime Maranta is a rare houseplant. It is also called the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant because of the way its leaves fold into a prayer pose. Some people refer to it as the Green Prayer Plant.
Its complete scientific name is Maranta Leuconeura Lemon Lime.
This is an amazing looking plant thanks it the patterns can colors of its leaves. It grows lots of leaves as well making it an easy plant to shape if you like being able to do that.
The Maranta Lemon Lime is native to South America, particularly Brazil.
How to do your care for the Lemon Lime Maranta? The plant needs medium to bright indirect light to produce its many leaves. Good lighting also lets it maintain the gorgeous patterns.
It is a tropical plant so provide it with warm, humid conditions. Keep soil moist but avoid overwatering as the plant has shallow roots.
Lemon Lime Maranta Plant Care
Lemon Lime Prayer Plant Light Requirements
The Lemon Lime Maranta enjoys medium to bright indirect light. It needs sufficient light to support leaf development and maintain the lovely patterns on them.
Good lighting is essential for the plant since it will produce lots of leaves.
Additionally, the leaves are only able to maintain their colors and patterns if they get plenty of light.
Therefore, the best location for the plant is near an east facing window.
This supplied it with lots of gentle morning sunshine.
On the other hand, you can also place the plant in a west facing or south facing window. But make sure to protect it from the afternoon light using some kind of shade.
While the plant can tolerate the morning sun, it cannot withstand more than 2 or 3 hours of intense, noon to mid-afternoon sunlight.
The direct sunlight during these times will cause its leaves to turn yellow or even scorch.
So, if you like displaying the plant in these directions, either keep it at least 2-3 feet away from the window or use sheer curtains to filter some of the light.
On the other hand, low light is not a good idea as well.
Lack of light will cause the beautiful patterns to fade as the leaves turn more green in hopes to help the plant survive.
It can also slow growth causing fewer leaves to grow and smaller ones at that.
Therefore, if your home does not get sufficient natural lighting for one reason or another, try to supplement it with artificial lights.
You can use LED grow lights or fluorescent lights.
Lemon Lime Prayer Plant Temperature
The Lemon Lime Maranta is used to warm weather as it is a native of the tropical forests of Brazil and South America.
Therefore, it prefers temperatures between 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
It can likewise withstand hotter conditions without harm or any issues. But this range is where it feels most comfortable.
The reason is that the plant lives in the understory of the forest. Thus, it is covered by the large trees, their leaves and branches overhead.
These provide shade to keep the temperature a bit more moderate for the plant.
On the other hand, try not to leave it in temperatures below 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
While it can tolerate this for a while, the longer it stays there or the colder it gets, the more issues the Maranta Lemon Lime will experience.
Also, once you go under 60 degrees Fahrenheit, you’ll start seeing its growth slow down.
Indoors, this is usually not a problem unless you keep the air conditioner on full blast.
By the way, don’t put the plant in the same room with the A/C. Also, avoid placing it beside open windows or doors where cold drafts come in.
These conditions negative affect the plant.
Outdoors, you may need to take more precaution depending on where you live.
The plant likes USDA Hardiness Zones 11 and 12 because it has warm, sunny weather throughout the year. Therefore, you can keep it outside 12 months of the year.
But in colder areas, make sure to monitor the weather and take your Lemon Lime Maranta back indoors once temperature nears 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
Never leave it outdoors during winter.
Maranta Lemon Lime Humidity
The Lemon Lime Maranta has ideal humidity of 50% to 70%.
The lower end of the range is closer to its threshold while the higher half is ideal for optimal growth.
This is likewise the case for other Maranta varieties.
The plant likes this kind of environment because it is used to living in the tropical forests of South America where the prevailing climate is hot and humid.
Therefore, it is a good idea to maintain sufficient humidity to keep the plant happy.
Because humidity involves the moisture in the air, its leaves are easily affected if it is not high enough.
The biggest sign to look out for are brown, crispy leaf edges and tips. These will get dry and brittle as well. And the longer it stays in low humidity, the more leaves will be affected.
On the other hand, if you give it high humidity, you’ll see the colors and patterns on its foliage become more vibrant.
Thus, depending on where you live, you may or may not have any issues with humidity regarding the lemon lime prayer plant.
That said, if you do need to increase moisture in the air, you can get a humidifier.
Other options are to mist the plant regularly or place it on a pebble tray.
Related
- Why are My Prayer Plant Leaves Curling?
- How to Propagate Prayer Plants (Maranta)
- Why Does My Prayer Plant Have Brown Tips & Leaves?
- Why is my Prayer Plant Drooping? (Causes and Solutions)
- Why are My Prayer Plant Leaves Turning Yellow?
- Prayer Plant Care – How to Grow the Maranta Plant
How Often to Water Lemon Lime Maranta
The Lemon Lime Prayer Plant likes steady, consistent watering. This allows it to maintain moist soil.
On average, it does best when watered every 1-2 weeks.
The important things to keep in mind here are to avoid the extremes.
One, the plant does not like going dry. So, don’t underwater the plant or let the root ball go completely bone dry.
Either will cause the plant to wilt, its leaves to curl or turn its leaves brown.
If you leave it dehydrated regularly or for very long periods at a time, it could sustain damage as well.
The same can likewise be said for overwatering.
But you have different effects occurring here.
Overwatering can turn its leaves yellow. The leaves will feel soft and limp as well. But the most important thing to watch out for is root rot.
While not all overwatering incidents lead to root rot, they always carry the risk of doing so.
The worst part is that one case of root rot may be enough to kill your plants. This can happen if too much of the root system has rotted before you’re able to save the plant.
As such, avoid overwatering as well.
Therefore, the best way to water the Lemon Lime Maranta is to check the soil for moisture. Just feel the surface of the soil every week or 3-4 days.
If the surface feels wet or moist, don’t water.
If it is dry, then stick your finger into the soil mix about 1-2 inches deep. Then feel your fingertip to see if it feels wet or dry.
A wet fingertip or if some soil stick to it means it is still too early to water. So, check back again in the next 3-4 days or so.
But if your fingertip feels dry or only soil dust is there, then it is time to water.
By allowing part of the soil to dry between waterings, you can avoid overwatering the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant.
Lemon Lime Maranta Potting Soil
Lemon Lime Maranta needs well-draining potting mix. In most cases, you can use regular potting soil. Although you do want to monitor this to ensure it is not holding too much moisture.
The important thing here is to avoid soil that retains too much water.
If you notice that general houseplant potting mix you’re using is doing this, add a handful of perlite to improve drainage.
On the other hand, I do like to make my own potting mixes.
While you do need to procure the ingredients yourself, it comes out cheaper especially in the long run. But the biggest advantage I’ve found is that you can easily adjust soil mixes based on how the plant is responding.
This gives you a lot of flexibility and control.
A simple but effective potting mix for the Lemon Lime Maranta uses:
- 1 part potting soil
- 1 part peat moss
- 1 part perlite
You can swap out the peat moss for coco coir if you prefer to be more environmentally conscious.
Similarly, you can substitute coarse sand for perlite if that’s what you have at home.
Note that while this alternative works, I don’t like using sand because it tends to get compacted over time. Therefore, this can affect drainage for your soil mix.
Thus, if you do use sand in your potting mix recipe, I suggest refreshing the soil annually to avoid any compacting.
Last by but not least, you can ensure that any excess liquid that drains from the soil exits the pot by selecting a container with drainage holes.
Lemon Lime Prayer Plant Fertilizer
The Maranta Lemon Lime needs a steady stream of fertilizer to stay healthy, produce many leaves and maintain its beautiful leaves.
But it does not need a lot of it.
This is where many beginner gardeners fall into the trap thinking that more plant food means bigger and faster growing plants.
Unfortunately, it can actually damage the roots and turn the leaves yellow.
So, avoid doing this at all costs.
Instead, apply a water-soluble, balanced fertilizer once every 2 to 4 weeks during spring and summer. This is when the plant is actively growing.
Start with once a month and move up to bi-weekly if you don’t see the plant growing as expected.
Keep in mind that with fertilizer, less is more.
Don’t feed the plant during the fall and winter.
Lemon Lime Prayer Plant Pruning
The Lemon Lime Maranta is not a large plant.
In most cases it will grow to about 12 inches high and about the same width. But a lot of this will depend on how to prune it.
Some people will prune it to make it grow tall and bushy. Others prefer to limit its height but allow it to grow out on its sides.
Another thing worth noting is that the Lemon Lime Prayer Plant will produce tons of leaves. And these will grow to about 6 inches long with an oblong shape.
As such, it can get very full and dense if you allow it.
I personally like it when the plant becomes quite bushy.
How to Propagate Lemon Lime Maranta
The easiest way to propagate the Lemon Lime Maranta is by stem propagation.
Here, you can take stem cuttings and grow them into new plants. The process is fairly straightforward and you can do it at home for free.
Additionally, you can propagate several new plants at a time.
Here’s how to propagate the Lemon Lime Maranta from stem cuttings.
- Take healthy a stem cutting with at least one node and several leaves on it. Cut the stem just below the leaf node.
- Remove any leaves at the bottom but keep the top leaves intact.
- Prepare a pot and fill it with fresh, well-draining potting mix.
- Plant the cuttings into the soil mix and water it to keep it moist.
- Leave the plant in a warm spot with bright indirect light. If you don’t have good humidity indoors, cover the pot with a plastic bag.
You can keep the cuttings in the pot and only move them once it is time to repot.
Or you can move them to a new pot once their roots reach 1-2 inches long.
How to Repot or Transplant Lemon Lime Maranta
The Lemon Lime Maranta does not need frequent repotting. In most cases, it takes 2 to 3 years before you need to repot it.
Therefore, there’s no hurry.
Instead, check the bottom of the pot to know when to repot. Once you see rooting sneaking out from the drainage holes, it means that the plant needs a bigger container.
To repot,
- Find a new pot that is once size larger than the current one (2 inches wider in diameter).
- Carefully unpot the plant then remove excess soil and untangle any roots that are clumped together.
- Prepare the new pot but adding fresh, well-draining potting mix until about a third of the way.
- Place the Lemon Lime Maranta into the new container and fill the rest of the space with potting mix.
- Water the soil.
The best time to repot the plant is spring to early summer.
After doing so, just care for the plant like you dd before.
Is It Toxic/Poisonous to Humans, Cats & Dogs
The Lemon Lime Prayer Plant is non-toxic. So, you can keep it anywhere around the house without the risk of causing any poison risk to cats or dogs.
The plant is also safe to keep around young children.
Lemon Lime Maranta Problems & Troubleshooting
Maranta Lemon Lime Pests
Spider mites, mealybugs and aphids are common pests that the Maranta Lemon Lime may have to deal with.
However, you may never need to deal with these bugs throughout the lifespan of the plant.
The important thing is to give it all the things it needs. This keeps its resistance strong.
On the other hand, stress makes the plant very susceptible to pests. And this can happen if it is overwatered, does not get the right temperature, humidity or something else.
On your end, regular checkups is essential.
This will let you deal with the pests as early as possible. And the earlier you spot them, the easier they are to eradicate.
You can use insecticidal soap and neem oil to do this.
Diseases
The Maranta Lemon Lime can experience root rot if overwatered. It has shallow roots which make it easy to excess moisture to overwhelm.
Therefore, avoid leaving the soil wet or watering too frequently.
In case the plant gets root rot, you’ll need to prune the rotten roots and repot it to fresh, dry, well-draining soil.
Similarly, excess water, this time on the leaves can cause bacterial and fungal infections.
Leaf spot disease is something that can happen.
And it will damage the leaves.
