Since 2016, I have been a proud plant-parent to my Maranta leuconeura, commonly called a Prayer Plant. It is a showy tropical plant native to South America that can survive outdoors in gardening zones 11-12, though it is not tolerant of cold temperatures. The leaves of this plant move throughout the day. At night will close its leaves upward when the sun goes down. This nightly movement of leaves folding as if in prayer gives the plant its common name.

Popular Prayer Plant Varieties

There are a lot of different maranta plant varieties in the world. Each of them bears their own signature splash to a home or office. The most common varieties that you’ll likely encounter are the red prayer plant (also called red veined), silver prayer plant (also called silver veined), and the lemon lime prayer plant. These varieties have leaf veins in a pinnately netted veneration, which is a fancy way of saying that there’s a central vein from which smaller veins branch off. Their colors and patterns delineate the varieties.

Red Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura var. erythroneura)

Also called the Herringbone Plant, the red veined prayer plant is the variety that I cultivate. The leaves are multi-colored with bright green centers, dark green middles, and medium green edges, shocked throughout with bright red veins.

The underside of a red prayer plant is a deep crimson red. The underside coloring is very showy when the plant is in its night or early-morning upright position. Red maranta plants tend to sprawl in their pots. They send out long vines of leaves so it’s easy to propagate a red prayer plant from cuttings.

Silver Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura var. kerchoveana)

This variety is also called Rabbit’s Foot or Rabbit Tracks for the dark green patches on its leaves. The silver veined prayer plant has light-green veins that cut through central patches of dark green, ending in lighter green edges. The undersides of this variety are lighter green to silver like the top leaf edges. Silver maranta plants are more compact. Their leaves grow around a central shaft and so it sits very well in a pot.

Lemon Lime Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura var. Lemon Lime)

A newer variety of prayer plant, this variety is shockingly bright green. It really livens up a room with its vibrant fishbone veins and almost neon color under its leaves. It makes a bold aesthetic statement for plant décor. This bright statement is why its popularity has grown in the past several years. I admit to being jealous that I don’t yet own one of these beauties!

Prayer Plant Care Indoors

Maranta plants will thrive in pots or hanging baskets indoors. In most varieties, branches of leaves will grow to spill over the edge of the pot. If elevated in any way, the branches will elegantly hang down into the space provided. It’s an easy plant to care for indoors. It has simple light and water needs and problems are generally easy to avoid and overcome.

Light Requirements

A prayer plant’s light requirements are easy to accommodate. Originally, it was a tropical plant that made its home on the darker jungle floor. It can survive and thrive in lower level light. But it will also do very well in any window that receives partial sun.

One common problem among prayer plants is a blanching of leaf color. This can be seen where the maranta colors are not as bright as they once were. For example, red prayer plants may no longer have red leaf colorings. In all prayer plant varieties, brightly colored herringbone patterns may even disappear. This problem is usually caused by a lack of light. Move your maranta closer to windows or shine a grow lamp on it for a few extra hours a day.

However, it’s best to keep a prayer plant away from full sun, as the leaves can burn in too-direct sunlight. Brown tips on your prayer plant leaves may be a sign that it’s getting too much sunlight. Move it to a place with indirect lighting to stop the leaves from burning.

Water Requirements

Brown tips on maranta leaves may also be a sign of underwatering. Being a tropical plant, Maranta plants adore frequent watering of about three times a week. The water should be room temperature. I find it nearly impossible to overwater a prayer plant. Less water is required in plastic pots as those planters are not as porous as terracotta, ceramic, or stoneware, so the soil doesn’t dry out as quickly. Prayer plant watering requirements aren’t a hassle, though. The plant will largely be fine if forgotten for a short span of time.

Yellow leaves may be an indication of another prayer plant problem. Overwatering may be a culprit if the maranta leaves are yellowing. However, that may not always be the case. Prayer plants will sometimes cull their own hanging vines to protect the main plant. This may occur when there’s not enough nutrients in the soil to keep the full plant sustained. A gentle fertilizer will sometimes help a prayer plant with yellow leaves. It’s generally a good idea to fertilize a maranta plant once a month. Occasionally watering with one part hydrogen peroxide with three parts water gives the roots some much-needed oxygen and prevents root rot.

Not all yellow leaves are bad, however. Prayer plants will naturally cull their own leaves and grow new ones over the course of its life span. If you have curls of new leaves sprouting along with yellowing older leaves, your maranta is probably just fine.

How Marantas Propagate

By Flowers

Maranta plants will flower, although flowers are not a primary method of propagation for prayer plants. Depending on the prayer plant variety, the tiny, lavender or white flowers may appear anywhere from mid-Spring to late-Autumn. This generally occurs only when the plant is receiving enough water. Prayer plant flowers are small, about the size of an American dime. They are “two lipped,” meaning they have two large petals and one smaller one in a bilateral formation. 

The prayer plant flowers are extremely ephemeral, blooming for only one day each. Each maranta flower stalk only puts out about 10 or so flowers. The flower stalk itself only lasts over the course of about two weeks before it’s also finished.  I have had four flower stalks going at one time before, but that’s rare. Most of the time the plant only produces one or two stalks at a time. 

By Cuttings

The primary method of maranta propagation is through their leaf branches, much in the same way that strawberry plants spread. In the wild, when the stalks spread out from the parent plant, the “elbows” of the leaves touch down into the soil. These joints have root nodes which then grow into the soil and form a new plant. The parent then cuts off the runner to the child plant and the process begins anew.

You can easily propagate a prayer plant by cuttings in water. [Click here for full instructions to propagate your prayer plant by cuttings!]

Conclusion

So, there you have it! A quick intro to one of my very favorite houseplants. Its daily movements are a joy to witness and make the maranta feel more like a pet than a plant. A prayer plant is so easy to care for. Plus, it’s sure to be a quick conversation starter with anyone who sees it.

Related Reading

Looking for other easy, beginner plants? From bold foliage to vibrant flowers, these plants are instant additions to home design and many are simple to care for. Check out this post for some more Easy Ornamental Houseplants for a glimpse at some of my favorites.