Prayer plants, including Maranta, Calathea, Stromanthe, and Ctenanthe species, are cherished for their striking foliage and unique leaf movements. They fold their leaves upward at night, resembling hands in prayer, which gives them their common name. A common question arises regarding their underground structures: do prayer plants have corms? Understanding their root system is important for proper care and cultivation.
What Are Corms?
Corms are specialized, swollen, underground plant stems that function as storage organs for nutrients. Unlike true bulbs, which have fleshy, layered scales, corms are solid internally. They typically have a flat or globe-shaped appearance and are covered by a protective, papery or fibrous skin called a tunic.
Corms help plants survive adverse conditions like winter or drought by storing starches and proteins. They produce new shoots and roots from buds at their base or along their surface. Common examples include gladiolus, crocus, and taro, where the corm is the primary unit of vegetative reproduction.
Prayer Plant Root Systems
Prayer plants, including Maranta, Calathea, Stromanthe, and Ctenanthe, do not possess true corms. Instead, they primarily develop rhizomes as their main underground storage and spreading structures. Rhizomes are horizontal, underground stems that store starches and proteins, enabling the plant to survive and spread. They grow laterally, producing roots from their underside and sending up new shoots and leaves from nodes along their length.
While some prayer plant species may form small, swollen root structures or tubers, these are distinct from true corms. For instance, Maranta leuconeura (red prayer plant) produces rhizomes from which new leaves emerge. The roots of Calathea, Stromanthe, and Ctenanthe are also described as delicate and fibrous, forming compact or spreading root systems. These rhizomatous structures allow prayer plants to spread and establish new growth.
Implications for Prayer Plant Care
Understanding that prayer plants grow from rhizomes, not corms, has practical implications for their care and propagation. These underground stems store water and nutrients, making proper watering practices important to prevent rot. Overwatering can lead to soggy soil and rhizome rot, while underwatering can result in crispy leaf edges. Allowing the top layer of soil to dry slightly between waterings helps maintain a healthy balance.
Repotting prayer plants requires careful handling of their delicate rhizomes. When repotting, choose a pot only slightly larger than the current one to prevent excess soil from retaining too much moisture, which could lead to root rot. The best time for repotting is typically in the spring, before the plant’s active growing period.
Propagation is effectively achieved through the division of these rhizomes. This method involves gently separating sections of the plant, ensuring each division has healthy roots and shoots attached to a portion of the rhizome. This approach leverages the plant’s natural growth habit, allowing for successful expansion of a collection.