I recently acquired two houseplants. One is a majesty palm that I got from my mother's office. They were afraid they couldn't keep it alive, but of course I have less luck with plants than she does. But I took it and it is potted and in my living room by a north window. It gets moderate sunlight, not real bright though, about the same as when she had it. She said they didn't water it very often. They've already snipped a few of the leaves off completely, I have about 5 green ones left, beginning to turn brown. All the info on caring for this plant I have found hasn't been helpful, it seems every site suggests something different. I live in Missouri and I would plant it outside, but I'm assuming ice storms in the winter aren't good for Palms. Any advice on indoor care would be great. Next up, and I'll supply a pic if I ever get my camera going, is just a common houseplant I got at Wal-Mart a couple years ago. I had it for a while with no problems, then somebody cared for it while I was away for a year. I just got it back. It was in fine condition when I brought it into the house, we left for 3 hours, came back and the whole thing was completely wilted. Best description possible: Potted, about 1 foot - 1 1/2 feet tall from soil to tip, dark green shiny hairless leaves about 6 inches in length, and one white bloom, not a flower-flower, but almost like a pod. Since the wilting, I realized we watered it too much, put it outside to dry out overnight, saw MINOR improvement the next morning, brought it back in, put it by the window, cut to now and it's actually turning brown. Sorry for writing a novel, but as for this plant I just mentioned, I have officially gotten to the end of the internet looking to find out what it is, but to somebody that knows NOTHING about plants, the What Plant is This sites aren't very useful. Thanks guys! Edit: A-HA! I knew as soon as I made this thread I'd find out what this plant is. It's a peace lily. Well, anyway, it's still dying to the point that I don't think there's any saving it.
A common house plant with a single white "flower" is the peace lily. Check this out, and see if it's what you've got. Also a little bit of info on watering these babies... http://www.plant-care.com/drooping-peace-lily-spathiphyllum.html
You have been most helpful! Thank you. After reading up a bit, my pride is suffering as much as this plant, as I have found that I managed to almost completely kill in 3 hours what is probably one of the most fool-proof houseplants in existance. Oh well, I am now on a mission to resurrect my peace lily. Thanks again!
Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you truly have a Majesty Palm it is not likely to survive in your living room. There are other discussions about this plant on this board. If it is truly what is commonly called a Majesty Palm, the species is Ravenea rivularis . This beautiful "house palm" is not a "house palm" despite what nurseries, discount store and grocery stores who sell it as one say all the time! My youngest daughter watched her Majesty Palm slowly yellow and die in her living room near an East window and kept calling to ask why it was not doing well since mine grows quickly all the time. Seems the people who sold it to her convinced her it was a great "house plant". Believe me, it's not. This is an outdoor palm suitable for south Florida or Southern California. Some people even grow them in Georgia and Louisiana. The plant can do very well if given the conditions it requires. Mine is grown in NW Arkansas but it lives inside a tropical atrium where the temp never drops below 55 degrees and it is watered frequently. It can even tolerate a very light freeze, but certainly won't survive outdoors in Missouri. The palm can make a very nice landscape palm,but it can be fussy. Ravenea rivularis likes lots and lots of water and bright light, scientific references say full sunlight. But to make it survive the soil must be very porous. Never muddy. The palm originates from Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. They live along rivers on the fringes of rain forests! Get the idea? They love water! I once tried to grow five of these Majesty palms in my front yard in South Florida and all five died a slow death. I finally went to see a large grower of these palms in Homestead, FL and the trick is the water! They need lots of water! Far more than most people give them. And they simply will not survive, even near a window, in a home. They are popular with sellers because they grow so fast. But the grower grows them in full sunlight (with lots of water) and then they are suddenly taken into a grocery store or discount store where the light is dim. The plant is already on the way to a slow demise. Then most people take them home to even dimmer light and the results are inevitable. The grower says nothing to the retailer because it is a quick grower in his field. The seller says nothing to you because he turns a quick profit. After all, they are beautiful, and tempting! In our atrium the palm gets a lot of humidity since it is next to the pond, just like a river in its home country. It receives bright filtered light and, during the summer, almost direct overhead light which is filtered by the Lexan skin that covers the building. During the winter, it does receive less light, but still quite bright. The plant is just over 10 feet tall after 5 years and grows so fast we have to remove quite a few fronds each year to keep it from blocking the walkway and the view of the pond. And the palm likes fertilizer feeding. Mine is watered at least 5 days a week! Without the removal of the fronds this plant can hit 40 feet!! Ravenea rivularis is frequently offered very inexpensively at discount stores as a house plant. But it's not a good house plant unless you've got a greenhouse. Don't let your local nursery salesperson try to convince you otherwise. It's simply requires too much light to be in the house! I'm attaching a photo so you can see if what you have resembles this species. Oh yea, just in case you're tempted! This palm can grow to 40 feet tall! And it lives along rivers in its native Madagascar. Get the idea? It loves water!
Yep, the picture is accurate. Of course mine is a little more sickly looking what with the pruning we've had to do, but that is what I have. Bummer too, because I did more reading before you posted your reply and found out that this is a hopeless thing. Every site basically said "If you're keeping this indoors, you might as well throw it out now." Oh well, now I know! At least I'm not the one that bought it originally :) Thanks for all the information!
Don't feel too bad! You are one of many people who have been mislead into thinking this one can live in a living room. I see them in local discount stores all the time. Since I know they are all doomed to die a slow death it makes me want to strangle the garden center manager! But the plant is so easy to grow for the plant grower, and so easy to sell because of the natural beauty, this will not likely end soon. Just warn your friends not to waste their money. Only if the retailers can't sell them because people wise up will they eventually stop selling something so beautiful that is almost certain to end up in the trash. By the way, your spath will do just fine in the living room. I've got them in my office and keep the blinds closed! They don't mind the dim light at all. There are some good discussions on this board about Spathiphyllum sp. Look up a couple using the search engine at the top of the page.
