Peace lilies are one of the most bought houseplants due to how easy they are to care for, but getting them to flower can be a little more complicated.
These pretty flowers tend to bloom in spring and sometimes again in autumn if they are being looked after properly.
It is important to make sure a peace lily is being fed a fertiliser once a month during its growing season, but you do not have to spend a fortune to ensure your plant is getting the right nutrients.
Savannah Toal, a gardening expert and founder of Plant Savvy, has shared that one “eco-friendly and affordable” way to feed houseplants is to use leftover rice water.
She said: “If you aren’t washing your rice before you cook it, you should really try it…and then save the water for your house plants!
“Washing rice causes nutrients and starches to leach into the water to create a great mild fertiliser that can even take the place of NPK fertilisers. Be sure to allow the water to cool before watering your plants.”
An NPK fertiliser contains the three essential nutrients that plants need to survive nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
Nitrogen helps the leaves and stem grow strong while potassium improves the quality of the flowers that bloom and phosphorus is needed for general flower production.
Not only does rice water contain these nutrients but the starch is highly beneficial for the soil to make it healthier and is likely to encourage flowering.
Simply mix one part rice water with one part clean tap water, then feed it to your peace lily once every four weeks.
Make sure to only use unsalted and unseasoned rice water on your peace lily as if salt gets into the soil it will dehydrate the plant and likely burn the roots.
If you cook lots of potatoes then you can also save the boiled water and feed it to peace lilies as it also contains a lot of starchy goodness that they will love.
Potato water contains potassium, phosphorus and other trace minerals that will give your peace lily a boost to encourage flowering.
Savannah said: “Save your potato water after you boil them. Flowers and veggies love the starch from potatoes and will thank you for it.
“Simply boil some potatoes (be sure to not use water that has been salted) and save the water.
“Leave it out to cool and in the morning water your plants with them. It recycles water and provides nutrients your plants need to grow.”
Like with rice water, mix the potato water with clean tap water to dilute it and feed it to your peace lily once a month to help you get bigger abundant flowers for the rest of the year.
