Last updated on September 26th, 2022 at 01:11 pm
All plants require light, even those grown indoors. It is one of the essential factors that plants need, since, it facilitates the production of food necessary for the survival of plants.
Some plants love light so much that they would not even germinate without exposure to full sun. For a house plant like peace lily, how much plant is required?
Peace lily thrives in medium lighting conditions. They grow best when exposed to medium, indirect light, and shady conditions. Moderation is the key to providing appropriate light for your peace lily because the light should neither be too much nor too little to ensure optimum growth.
How Much Light Should I Give my Peace Lily?
You should give your peace lily only a moderate amount of light. Avoid exposing your peace lily to direct sunlight, especially, full afternoon sun. In the absence of window light indoors, use fluorescent light to provide light for your peace lily indoors. The fluorescent should be placed 10-12 inches away and provided for about 16-18 hours each day.
Though having great ornamental value, peace lilies’ light requirement constitutes another reason they are grown indoors. Unlike other indoor houseplants like pothos and spider plants, peace lilies are least tolerant of exposure to light.
Note, however, that peace lilies are not necessarily light intolerant but are intolerant of direct and excessive light. In the presence of direct sunlight, streaks and brown spots develop on the plant. Yellowing of leaves is also observed when there is too much or too little light.
Indoor conditions are the best to grow peace lilies because they provide the warmth, humidity, and moderate light required for proper growth. Since peace lilies do not appreciate direct sunlight, how do you know the intensity of light sufficient for a peace lily?
You do not need a photometer to measure the intensity of light peace lilies receives indoors, but here is what you can consider. When the light in a room is sufficient to read a book, it is enough for a peace lily.
Now, you can no doubt see why indoor conditions favor the growth of peace lilies. The beauty and ornamental value of peace lilies are enhanced when grown indoors with proper lighting conditions.
Fluorescent lights come in handy, especially, in the dark winter months where natural light is limited. Though an artificial light source, fluorescent lights have proven to be efficient in enhancing peace lily’s growth. I recommend a moderate-sized fluorescent lamp fit for your peace lily plant and keep them on for a minimum of 16 hours.
Peace lilies can also be grown outdoors, but only if properly placed to receive indirect sunlight. Proper placement of peace lily outdoors is essential for survival, so consider placing your peace lily under a shade preferably, under a densely branched tree.
Another good location to place your peace lily outdoors is a cool well-shaded porch or patio. Thus far, I have considered how much light a peace lily needs focusing only on a single extremity – too much light. Now, let us consider the other extremity, low light.
Can Peace Lilies Survive in Low Light?
In low lights, peace lilies not only survive through but live, maintaining their ornamental value. Though low, provided the light is stable in presence, peace lilies will adapt conveniently if the temperature and humidity levels are appropriate. Peace lilies can also survive in full shade and darkrooms and corners, even in a closet!
Peace lilies practically love shades void of direct light. Therefore, low lights are no danger to the survival of peace lilies. Still, the amount of light available to a plant greatly determines its outward appearance.
Remember, even though peace lilies can survive a dark room, corner, or closet, it still requires light growth, at least periodically. In bright, indirect light, peace lilies grow attractively, blooming profusely, but this declines in low light.
Flowering, however, is impeded in low light where peace lilies grow only as foliage plants, not ornamental plants. Though very unusual, a peace lily can suffer from insufficient light. This condition becomes visible when the leaves of the peace lily begin to turn yellow. In this condition, however, the plant will remain alive for a long period.
Yellowing of leaves can also indicate exposure to too much light. Still, this is most common with extremely low light. The reason is that when the light available for the plant is not sufficient, the plant is unable to produce sufficient chlorophyll, which gives the leaves their green color.
Ensuring moderation and enhancing the appearance of peace lilies, I recommend you improve low lightning conditions as much as possible.
One way you can do this is by using artificial lights. Fluorescent lights are a good substitute for natural light since they meet the needs of plants, although, you’ll need to keep them on for much longer.
Where should I Place a Peace Lily in my House?
You can place your peace lily practically anywhere in a room. However, to enhance blooming, it is best to place peace lilies at a good distance from a window, preferably a north or south-facing window to avoid direct sunlight.
No doubt you desire to place your peace lily in a prominent position in your house. Still, it is best to consider how much light the plant will be exposed to as this will greatly determine the health and growth rate. Here are a few things to consider when citing your peace lily given its light requirement:
1. Nearness to a Window
Windows are excellent sources of light in a house and, since, peace lilies do not tolerate direct sunlight, avoid placing them on a windowsill. However, if the plant depends wholly on natural light, it is fine to place your peace lily some distance away from the window and not directly under it.
The distance should be such that the light reaching it will cast a good but not perfect shadow on an object. This distance will moderate lightning, a condition required for perfect growth.
East and west-facing windows are not recommended because they provide direct sunlight and for long periods. Ensure to screen off your windows in winter to balance temperature while exposing the plant to sufficient light.
2. Nature of Glass on the Windows
The nature of the glass used on a window directly determines how much light passes through them. While a normal glass would allow enough sunlight, tempered glass will restrict some light rays from passing through.
Therefore, it is imperative to consider the type of glass on your window and how much light it absorbs. This information will guide you in the placement of your peace lily indoors, considering lighting.
Additionally, when your glass is dirty or wet, it cannot absorb as much light as it should. So, it is important to keep window glasses clean and dry, especially north and south-facing windows. This condition will provide the bright, indirect, light every peace Lily requires.
3. Presence of Mirrors
Mirrors do a great job in reflecting light that is shone on them, and did you know, the reflected light has the same intensity as the normal light. For this reason, it is important to consider the presence of a mirror in a room where peace lilies are placed.
Ensure to keep peace lilies away from the reflection path of mirrors except where the available light is extremely low. The reason is that if a mirror reflects light on a peace lily, then the plant will receive double the amount of light it was exposed to originally.
In moderate light, mirrors will increase the intensity of light peace lilies are exposed to, making it excessive, which will affect the peace lily plant adversely.
4. Color of the Room
Depending on the color of your room, the walls can either absorb or reflect light when the room is exposed. Cool colors like blue and green absorb light. Meanwhile, in a bright color such as white, light is reflected in the room.
Therefore, it is best to place your peace lily farther away from windows in a brightly colored room. In such rooms, the walls and aid the plant to absorb light by reflecting it all around. In cooler rooms, you should place peace lilies closer to windows which may be their only light source.
Conclusion
Peace lilies are quite undemanding plants when it comes to light requirements too. They require only bright but indirect light to thrive. Peace lilies can also grow well in low-lights and survive even dark rooms and corners.
Peace lilies are a good choice for indoor decorations because they can grow anywhere indoors. All you need is to keep them away from sunlight, and you can mark light requirements as checked for peace lilies!
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