Maranta Lemon Lime Care Guide

Maranta are a genus of about 28 species of flowering plants, native to tropical Africa and tropical America. They are evergreen perennial herbs or subshrubs. Marantas are related to the Zebra Plant, Heliconia. Their stiff leaves stemming from a single, central stem resemble bamboo canes enfolded by lily pads.

Maranta grow in bright indirect light with plenty of moisture. They need at least 50 percent shade to keep their leaves from scorching if the room is sunny. This plant grows well under fluorescent lighting as long as it is kept moist.

Keep maranta away from heat vents and air conditioning units that dry out the soil too much between waterings. The soil should let go of its surface when pressed lightly. In this article, we will focus on how to take care of Maranta Lemon Lime.

Characteristics

• Scientific name: Maranta leuconeura
• Common Names: Maranta, Prayer Plant
• Origin: Amazon region of South America
• Indoor/Outdoor plant: Outdoor in tropical climates. Indoors as a houseplant.
• Height and Structure: The stems grow to be about 10 feet tall, with the leaves reaching about 2 feet long underneath. It is recommended to keep this plant indoors as a houseplant in colder areas because it can succumb to frost damage when left outdoors during the winter months.
• Temperature: Keep the temperature around 75°F at night and 85°F during the day. Temperatures that are much over 90°F may cause leaf scorch or browning on the leaf margins.
• Flower Color: The flower color varies from species but ranges from white to pink or red.

How To Plant a Maranta Lemon Lime

Planting Time

The best time to transplant maranta is during the spring or summer. The best time of day to plant this plant is early morning, just after watering it.

Spacing

Maranta Lemon Lime loves space. A mature maranta needs about 1-2 feet around it so that it can sprawl naturally without obstacles interfering with its growth rate. You wouldn’t want your Maranta Lemon Lime stifled by not having enough room to spread out, would you?

If you are growing indoors, place your plant where it will receive bright indirect sunlight all day long and do not obstruct the circulation of air around the leaves on the stem ( don’t let chairs or tables block airflow ). Place it at least four feet away from direct light sources like windows or doorways.

Light

Maranta grows best in bright indirect light, about 50 percent shade, because it can burn easily if exposed to direct sunlight for a long period of time. If you place your maranta outside during the summer months, put it where it will receive morning or afternoon sun and move it back into a shadier location when the sun starts setting.

During warmer times (spring and summer), keep your maranta outdoors as much as possible but make sure you water it adequately before bringing it back inside again. Water thoroughly whenever the top one inch of soil feels dry; do not let this plant sit in the water though, make sure water penetrates through the potting media to the bottom of the pot for at least 30 minutes.

Water in the morning and keep it in a shady location until evening to prevent leaf damage from the hot afternoon sun.

Soil

Maranta Lemon Lime is an epiphytic plant meaning that it attaches itself to other plants for support but does not derive nutrients from them like parasitic plants do. For this reason, you want to use loose potting media such as bark or peat mix when growing it indoors or outdoors.

A standard soil-less potting mix is best, though. You do not need fertilizer if you are planting this plant outside because all their nutritional needs are derived from the air ( like most atmospheric plants ). However, if you grow maranta inside, you should fertilize every month except during winter using an organic liquid fertilizer.

How To Grow a Maranta Lemon Lime

Growth Habits

These plants are beautiful to look at, but they can be aggressive growers if you give them the right conditions. Sometimes, their vines will start creeping into neighboring pots or above the soil level, so you should keep your plant pruned back if this becomes a problem.

The vines can become unattractive and strangle other plants, so it is best to prune them often for appearance sake and safety reasons. Staking is recommended because Maranta Lemon Lime tends to grow upwards towards the light rather than outward like many other houseplants do.

If you want to grow it in a hanging pot instead of letting it sit on top of the soil, then sure you use a porous potting media like bark or peat mix so you can attach it to wood or wire with some fishing line.

You may also use stakes to tie the vines up and “hug” your plant for support if they grow too long. You can do this during planting time, but most people usually wait until after the Maranta Lemon Lime is already growing vigorously before staking it because it makes more sense to them that way.

Watering

When growing maranta, make sure you water thoroughly until water runs out the bottom of the pot. Water should penetrate through to the bottom, not remain standing or puddled on top of the soil.

If you are growing maranta indoors, then it is recommended that you mist your plant once a day because this will remove any dust from its leaves, allow them to drink in plenty of humidity, and keep them healthy through proper hydration. Make sure that your environment can support high humidity for the best growth rates.

Fertilizing

Fertilizing is not needed for maranta to grow indoors because the soil provides all the necessary nutrients for healthy growth. However, suppose you are growing it outside. In that case, you can fertilize every other month after new growth starts in spring with organic liquid fertilizer or use a balanced 20-20-20 NPK granular fertilizer for best results.

Humidity

Maranta Lemon Lime prefers high humidity, and you can easily increase indoor humidity by misting your plant every day. For the best growth rates, keep this plant away from air conditioning vents or drafty windows to prevent dryness from cool air blowing on it.

It is also recommended that you give them a humid environment until new leaves start forming in spring, then reduce the mist frequency afterward if possible.

If you want to grow Maranta indoors year-round, then make sure you use a humidity tray under it with large pebbles and water. This will ensure proper hydration because most homes are not humid enough for epiphytic plants like Maranta leonine.

Mulching

It is not necessary to use mulch for maranta plants, but you can use it every two years if desired. Make sure the mulch does not touch the crown of the plant or cover any part of its stem. If you are growing maranta outside, then it is recommended that you do not mulch around its base because this will rot the roots over time due to overwatering issues.

Trimming and Pruning

You should only keep the dead leaves from the bottom of your plant and never touch its existing foliage because these plants do not regenerate lost parts.

To prune this plant, you can cut off any vines that have gotten too long for your liking or pinch them back about halfway down to encourage new growth again at the stem of each vine.

If you are growing maranta indoors, then it is a good idea to trim any dead leaves off with a sharp pair of scissors every few months so insects cannot spread to healthy portions of the plant.

Pot And Repotting

Maranta is not a beginner plant, and sometimes growers experience health problems when they first receive it in the mail. This is because Maranta will start to grow new vines before its roots can support them, so you should never repot this plant until it has plenty of time to grow healthy roots to support itself.

When you report it, make sure to use porous potting media like bark or peat mix and organic fertilizer for best results. If you are growing maranta indoors, then make sure your pot has plenty of drainage holes at the bottom because stagnant water sitting on top of moist soil causes root rot.

Propagation

It is easy to propagate maranta leonine by cutting the vines off and laying them horizontally on a moist potting mix until roots form. Once these new plants develop a few leaves, you can cut them apart and use them as separate houseplants or give them away to ask your friends or family members.

Divide and Transplant

Maranta is not a plant that needs to be divided, but you can do so every few years if desired. Once you have plenty of vines, dig up the entire root ball and cut the vines apart using a sharp pair of scissors or pruners into clumps that contain at least three vines each.

You should only use this method when growing maranta indoors because it will cause problems when planted directly in outdoor soil due to overall lower humidity conditions.

Pests and Diseases

Maranta is a pest and disease-resistant plant that grows quickly when provided with the right amount of water, light, humidity, and fertilizer. However, it is more prone to getting wilted from too much or too little water than most other houseplants, so make sure you never over-water it during the summer growing season.

It also does not get infested by many insects, but mealybugs can be a midsummer issue if your Maranta has been overwatered. Some of the most common diseases you need to watch out for include root rot and botrytis blight.

Plant Species

Maranta leonine is an epiphytic plant that originates in Madagascar. There are over 40 different species of Maranta around the world, but they all generally look very similar to each other with light green leaves and colorful undersides.

Companions

Maranta leonine likes to grow in containers or hanging baskets which are the perfect size for the plant at maturity because it averages about 6 inches tall. The leaves of this plant look great when growing next to plants with dark green color along with light green ones. If you want to create a jungle-like effect, you should also grow other vines near Maranta.

Toxicity

There are no toxins in maranta leonine that may harm a pet or human when ingested. That being said, it is always a good idea to use caution when allowing your children or pets to play with this plant because climbing vines can pose quite a hazard if they get caught on something, or someone tripped over the potting mix at its base.

In addition, make sure you wash your hands after touching Maranta because some people report developing rashes from exposure to its sap.