Peace lilies, those beloved houseplants with rich green leaves and rare flowers, have been the subject of a miraculous revelation in bloom.
Typically low-maintenance houseplants, peace lilies can thrive indoors as long as their basic needs are met, but sometimes they need a little encouragement to reveal their white blooms.
On the Gardening UK Facebook group, one woman’s two-year quest to see a peace lily flower finally paid off, prompting her to share an uplifting post.
Jean Hunter posted a winning photo of her peace lily in bloom and captioned it: “Finally, after two years of trying, my peace lily is blooming beautifully.”
He went on to share his secret to success and advised other plant lovers to prune, saying: “Thank you to whoever advised me to cut the leaves. Bottom line, you should try it if your peace lily isn’t blooming and you’ve tried everything else.”
Jean confessed her surprise at the sudden display of flowers after she had almost given up hope: “It only takes about 20 seconds and you’re done. I couldn’t believe my eyes and gave up hope that it would ever bloom.”
His method has received support from other green-fingered hobbyists in the group, whose peace lilies respond well to pruning.
Emma Knight happily revealed: “I love good bread. They have at least six flowers all the time after years without flowers.”
Marco Sandro also noted his advice: “Peace lilies focus on flowering more if you cut the new shoots.
“The new shoots take most of the energy, but if you cut them off, it directs its energy to the flowers etc instead of the shoots. Good luck.”
When asked how many leaves she cut, Jean revealed, “About six or seven to let in enough light and not be too bushy. I also left an inch or two off the base.”
Pruning is not only necessary to encourage flowering, but it also keeps peace lilies manageable.
The sprawling green giant is not everyone’s cup of tea. Some people find their peace lilies compact enough for a clean-looking table decoration.
And if you’re wondering when you should wave your pruning shears at a peace lily, don’t sweat it – any time will work, as they lack a true hibernation state like many other plants.