Why Are My Peace Lily Leaves Turning Black? (5 Reasons)

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Peace lilies are some of the most popular modern houseplants that you’ll find. They’re really nice and have a certain ornamental quality to them that makes them perfect for many homes.

People even give these houseplants as gifts quite often, and you might have received one recently. You’re likely happy with the look of the plant, but there can be some issues that will pop up if you make certain mistakes.

For example, some people have reported seeing the leaves start to turn black. Why would your peace lily’s leaves turn black, though?

Keep reading to learn about why a peace lily might have its leaves turn black. You’ll also learn a bit about what might be able to help you to turn things around if this has happened to your plant.

1 – Watering Issues

Watering issues will be the most common reason why a peace lily will have its leaves turn black. If you notice that the tips of the leaves are turning black, then this is a likely sign that you aren’t watering the peace lily enough.

Peace lilies come from an environment where it rains a lot, and this means that they don’t do well when they don’t get enough water. If you forget to water your peace lily properly, then it will start to shrivel up, and it might even die if you don’t correct things.

Watering the peace lily too much can also lead to big problems, and this could turn the leaves black as well. When you water the peace lily so much that the soil becomes soggy, the roots of the plant could get suffocated.

The way to fix watering issues is to be more careful about what you’re doing. Water the plant consistently and try to keep the soil moist without making it soggy.

2 – Poor Water Quality

Poor water quality can sometimes cause the leaves of peace lilies to turn black as well. Have you been watering your peace lily using standard tap water?

Many people have tap water that contains chemicals such as chlorine, fluoride, and many other types of impurities. This can have an impact on your plant that could cause it not to receive nutrients as it should.

Eventually, you might even notice black spots on the leaves of your plant. Thankfully, you can easily avoid situations like this by just using filtered water.

Buy a good water filter for your tap so that you can water your plants safely. You could also buy filtered water from the store that you can use to water your plants.

3 – Root Rot

Root rot is something that can occur when you’ve been watering your plant way too much. Essentially, if you keep watering your peace lily more than you should, then the issue is going to get way worse.

Over time, the peace lily is going to have its roots completely rot. If you look at the roots of the peace lily, then you might notice that they have become mushy.

Sometimes it’s not going to be possible to save a peace lily that is suffering from root rot. Whether the plant will survive or not will depend on how advanced the root rot is.

You can try to replant the peace lily using new soil after removing the rotted parts of the plant. Try to plant the peace lily in soil that has excellent drainage so that you don’t have this problem in the future.

You’ll also need to be mindful to correct your watering practices since that is generally what causes root rot to occur. Soil with better drainage and better watering practices should prevent root rot from occurring in the future.

If your plant doesn’t survive the root rot, then you can take what you learned and do better next time. Some new peace lily owners make mistakes like this.

4 – Fungal Issues

Fungal issues could be the cause of black spots on your leaves as well. If the soil gets too moist, then it could invite fungal growth that will be harmful to your plant.

There are quite a few different types of fungal infections that you might have to deal with. However, it’s notable that you deal with fungal issues in pretty much the same way no matter what.

You’re going to be able to solve things by using a fungicide to clean the plant and destroy the fungus. Some people shy away from using fungicide due to worrying that it’ll be too harsh for the peace lily.

You could also try cleaning the peace lily with baking soda since it’s an antifungal agent as well. Spraying a mixture of baking soda and water on the plant should work pretty nicely.

5 – Pest Issues

If none of the above issues appear to be to blame for the black leaves on your peace lily, then it could also be a pest. Pests such as mites, mealybugs, and scales will try to feed on peace lilies.

Bugs like this chew on peace lilies and try to suck out the moisture. This can lead to black spots appearing on the leaves of the plant.

You can get rid of bugs by showering the plant and washing it off well. Some bugs will be a bit more problematic to get rid of than others, though, and you might need to wash the plant with insecticidal soap.

To protect the plant moving forward, you could try treating it with neem oil. Things like this can keep pests away from your plants, and it’s recommended to try something like this if you know that pest issues are a problem in your area.

Final Thoughts

There are quite a few different things that can cause peace lilies to have their leaves turn black. You could have made a mistake when watering your plant, but it could also be caused by fungal infections or pests.

Determining what is going on shouldn’t be all that difficult so long as you pay attention to the plant. If you made mistakes when caring for the plant, then you can try to correct them to get the peace lily back to normal.

If you accidentally kill the peace lily, then you’ll likely be mad at yourself. You just have to use your mistakes as a learning experience so that you can care for your plants better in the future.

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