Plant Care Fishbone Prayer Plant

Fishbone Prayer Plant

4.9 out of 5 (29 experiences)

Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Fast grower plant personality Fast grower
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Large, lush leaves plant personality Large, lush leaves

Also known as

Calathea burle marxii, Maranta leuconeura 'Amabilis Mint' and fishbone prayer plant, blue ice plant

Taxonomy

Ctenanthe burle-marxii
Ctenanthe
Marantaceae
Zingiberales

How to care for Fishbone Prayer Plant

💦 Water

How often to water your Fishbone Prayer Plant

Water needs for Fishbone Prayer Plant
0.5 cups
every 9

Fishbone Prayer Plant needs 0.5 cups of water every 9 when it doesn’t get direct sunlight and is potted in a 5" pot.

Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.

Calculate water needs of Fishbone Prayer Plant

Water 0.5 cups every
9

Does your plant get direct sunlight?

Select the pot size

5"
☀️ Light

Finding light for Fishbone Prayer Plant in your home

Light needs and placement for plant Fishbone Prayer Plant: 6ft from a window
6ft or less from
a window

Fishbone Prayer Plant can tolerate being far from a window and light source.

Place it less than 6 feet from a south-facing window to ensure it receives enough light to survive 💪.

Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement of Fishbone Prayer Plant in your home 🏡.

🪴 Nutrients

How to fertilize Fishbone Prayer Plant

Nutrient, fertilizer, and repotting needs for Fishbone Prayer Plant: repot after 2X growth

Most potting soils come with ample nutrients which plants use to produce new growth.

By the time your plant has depleted the nutrients in its soil it’s likely grown enough to need a larger pot anyway.

To replenish this plant's nutrients, repot your Fishbone Prayer Plant after it doubles in size or once a year—whichever comes first.

Browse #FishbonePrayerPlant
💡 FAQs
⭐ Difficulty Level
💦 Water Needs

Fishbone Prayer Plant prefers for the soil to dry out between waterings and should be watered regularly. Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.

Fishbone Prayer Plant Water Frequency →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Root Rot →


☀️ Sunlight Needs

Fishbone Prayer Plant can tolerate being far from a window and light source. Place it less than 6 feet from a south-facing window to ensure it receives enough light to survive 💪. Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement in your home 🏡.

Fishbone Prayer Plant Light Requirements →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Direct Sunlight Needs & Tolerance →


🐶 🐈 👶 Toxicity

Fishbone Prayer Plant is not known to cause harm to humans or pets. Regardless, if you, a family member, a cat, or dog has ingested any plant material, please consult a doctor or a veterinarian.

Is Fishbone Prayer Plant Edible? →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Toxicity to Cats →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Toxicity to Dogs →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Toxicity to Humans →


💨 Humidity

Fishbone Prayer Plant doesn’t require additional humidity. Plants absorb most water through their root system rather than their leaves, so the best way to provide humidity for your plants is through watering the soil.

Fishbone Prayer Plant Humidity Needs →


🪴 Soil

Fishbone Prayer Plant does best in well-draining soil. A good soil will contain lots of organic matter such as coco coir as well as perlite or vermiculite to help with drainage. Adding a handful of perlite to regular store-bought potting soil should do the trick!

Best Soil Mix for Fishbone Prayer Plant →

Best Pots for Fishbone Prayer Plant →

When and How to Successfully Repot Fishbone Prayer Plant →

What Are Healthy Fishbone Prayer Plant Roots →


💩 Fertilizer

Fishbone Prayer Plant should be repotted after it doubles in size or once a year, whichever comes first. Fresh potting soil has all the nutrients your plant needs, so as long as it’s refreshed yearly, you shouldn’t need to use fertilizer. Remember, plants get their energy from sunlight, not fertilizer!

How Much and When to Fertilize Fishbone Prayer Plant →


🌎 Native Region

Fishbone Prayer Plant is native to Central and South America.


🌸 Flowers
⬆️ ⬇️ Growth Pattern

Fishbone Prayer Plant grows vertically and new growth will emerge from the top of the plant.

Fishbone Prayer Plant Lifecycle →

Fishbone Prayer Plant Size Guide →

How and When to Prune Fishbone Prayer Plant →


🌦️ Growing Outdoors
🌱 Propagation

Fishbone Prayer Plant can be propagated by division into new individual plants.

  • Check to see if there is more than one plant. In some cases they may still be beneath the soil surface. If you feel confident, you may remove the soil to check for baby plantlets below!
  • If there are multiple plants growing, unpot the plant and gently tug the plants apart, being careful not to disturb too many of the roots. They may be connected by large root segments which you may need to break to free the plantlet.
  • Pot up the new plant in well-draining soil
  • Repot the parent plant back into its original pot

How to Propagate Fishbone Prayer Plant →


🍂 Yellow Leaves

Yellow leaves aren’t always a reason to panic, and can be a normal part of a plant’s life cycle. Unless brand new leaves are turning yellow or all the leaves change color at once, it’s likely just your plant shedding old leaves.

Overwatering and root rot are the most likely cause of problems in Fishbone Prayer Plant, since they are sensitive to wet soil. The leaves may also appear to be curling or drooping. Less often, yellow leaves are caused by underwatering, nutrient deficiencies, or pests.

Replace soggy soil with fresh, dry soil and download Greg to make sure your plant never gets overwatered again!


🧐 Troubleshooting

When troubleshooting a sad-looking houseplant, start by checking for signs of distress in its leaves, such as yellowing, browning, or drooping, which can indicate overwatering or nutrient deficiencies.

Inspect the soil moisture; too dry or too wet soil can cause problems.

Ensure the plant is getting the right amount of light, as too much or too little can stress it.

Finally, consider environmental factors like temperature and humidity, and adjust care routines accordingly to revive your plant.


Care Summary for Fishbone Prayer Plant

Fishbone Prayer Plant

Fishbone Prayer Plant


Greg recommends:

Water

0.5 cups every 9 days

Placement

< 6ft from a window

Nutrients

Repot after 2x growth

Based on the 4” pot your plant is in, and that it doesn’t get direct sunlight.

What other plant parents say

Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Fast grower plant personality Fast grower 22
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Large, lush leaves plant personality Large, lush leaves 12
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Survivor plant personality Survivor 10
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Browns easily plant personality Browns easily 5
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Blooms easily plant personality Blooms easily 3
Fishbone Prayer Plant has a Easy to propagate plant personality Easy to propagate 2
@BoozyBillsBabe avatar
@@BoozyBillsBabe
leaf-1 46 Plants
xp 9,015 XP
globe Baltimore, MD
01/14/2022

A pretty easy prayer plant in my experience. Grows pretty quickly and doesn’t brown as easily as some other prayer plants I’ve had.

Fast grower Fast grower
Large, lush leaves Large, lush leaves
Survivor Survivor
@Roxanne avatar
@@Roxanne
leaf-1 29 Plants
xp 13,697 XP
globe Portland, OR
11/24/2021

In kokedama form, I water her every 3-4 days just when the moss layer starts to dry out, give her medium indirect light from a northeast facing window, and try to keep the humidity at 50% with a humidifier. She’s thriving and putting out at least 1-2 leaves each month.

Fast grower Fast grower
Survivor Survivor
Sophia avatar
@Sophia
leaf-1 7 Plants
xp 158 XP
09/17/2021

Mart can be a diva if he doesn’t get his fresh distilled water but otherwise he’s a lovely and easy plant to care for

Fast grower Fast grower
Large, lush leaves Large, lush leaves
Blooms easily Blooms easily
@owenwist avatar
@@owenwist
leaf-1 29 Plants
xp 684 XP
globe Deposit, NY
08/11/2021

Super easy to take care of

Fast grower Fast grower
@amyloudxn avatar
@@amyloudxn
leaf-1 57 Plants
xp 3,018 XP
globe Chermside, Queensland
07/10/2021

This plant just keeps on trucking for me! Despite being a ctenanthe I find it does fine with medium light and normal household humidity (30-50 where I live). Alway got a new leaf or two on the way, low maintenance, chill plant.

Fast grower Fast grower
Survivor Survivor
@glokell420 avatar
@@glokell420
leaf-1 36 Plants
xp 848 XP
globe Denver, CO
06/07/2021

i’m so in love with this plant. such beautiful growth and leaves! love the purple underneath too. just keep it by a humidifier and not in direct light and you’ll be set!

Fast grower Fast grower
Large, lush leaves Large, lush leaves
Survivor Survivor
@RJG avatar
@@RJG
leaf-1 126 Plants
xp 244,896 XP
globe Austin, TX
05/30/2021

very easy plant. good light and water like Greg says!

Fast grower Fast grower
@LaurenS99 avatar
@@LaurenS99
leaf-1 29 Plants
xp 1,282 XP
globe Denby Village, England
05/28/2021

Puts out new leaves often, is a bit tricky as it prefers distilled water and lots of humidity, can do this easily by placing with other plants or putting stones underneath the plastic pot. It’s a lovely edition to any room

Large, lush leaves Large, lush leaves
Easy to propagate Easy to propagate
Browns easily Browns easily
Fast grower Fast grower
@IamReal avatar
@@IamReal
leaf-1 6 Plants
xp 207 XP
04/25/2021

i love this plant it grows very fast with low to medium light and isnt a drag to take care of

Fast grower Fast grower
Survivor Survivor
@Nimzy avatar
@@Nimzy
leaf-1 11 Plants
xp 1,468 XP
04/25/2021

Easy plant to care for

Fast grower Fast grower
@Sarahski avatar
@@Sarahski
leaf-1 7 Plants
xp 814 XP
04/09/2021

I was worried about this plant because we live in a super dry area but it’s been doing great! Super resilient, fast growing, and beautiful! Also grows great in medium to low light!

Fast grower Fast grower
Survivor Survivor
Browns easily Browns easily
@DrDrey avatar
@@DrDrey
leaf-1 38 Plants
xp 2,617 XP
04/03/2021

Love this plant. Not super fussy compared to its relatives, grows quickly and has a really cool leaf pattern. Only downside is my cat loves to chew them to bits so I have to keep it away from him to keep it looking good.

Fast grower Fast grower

Trending in your area

Similar to Fishbone Prayer Plant

Discover rare plants