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lany1027

Spathiphyllum Peace Lily-millipede looking worm in the soil

Lany1027
9 years ago

Hi all! Need your help! Just a month agao I bought this beautiful Spathiphyllum plant which is inside the house. I was aware of the care for the plant so i have been watering once a week. Lately I am seeing these little worm in the soil only. they look like small millipedes. Does anyone know what it could be? I am worried. Do I need to re pot it with new soil? never seen this before. I have mini peace lily plants at home and those are ok. Any suggestions ideas?

Comments (30)

  • dellis326 (Danny)
    9 years ago

    Millipeds mostly eat other bugs. Leave them or remove them as you find them, I wouldn't repot it unless it's really creeping you out but repotting probably won't hurt the plant any either. I had a corn plant with millipedes at a former job for a few years. It didn't effect the plant at all. I dumped the soil out when I brought the plant home though.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Dellis326 thank you so.much. I don't see tones of them but once in a while. I'll try to.post a pic

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Of what they look like and the plant itself. Worried I think it look droopy now

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    One of the flowers is turning brown. Leaves are OK. Does it need more water. I'm trying not to over do it

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    It needs to be in a pot with a drainage hole. Spathiphyllums need a lot of water and are sensitive to the salts that build up in the soil. If there is no drainage, the salts will build up for sure.

    It is in the beginning stage of wilt in this picture- first sign is the flowers wilting. I feel the flowers on mine to know when to water.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I watered it some; i don't think i watered it enough when I did. here are some more pics; the flower and the little millipedes or little worm in the soil.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    my plant. leave are all green

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    there is dranaige; a hole underneath the pot. should i water it that it drains out some?

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    Yes, you should water it until water comes out the bottom. Do that every time and it should flush out the salts and prevent build up. If the flowers are wilting, it needs water. They should stand straight up. Give it a good soak.

    If the soil is soggy and it is still wilting, it is a root problem.

    A good tip for spathiphyllum- use bottled water or rain water. They dont like the chemicals in the tap water.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks it's seems I water it but it doesn't drain. what could it be?
    Should I be concerned abiut the little millipede in the pic i added before?

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    @lauraeli
    lauraeli Yes I got it to drain. I moved the soil around in the pot and it worked. finger crossed!!!!

  • flowerpottipper
    9 years ago

    Millipedes eat plant material, Centipedes eat bugs, i have no idea what type of bug that is, but if they're millipedes you need to get them out. I've raised giant millipedes before as pets and they ate plant-type things. Centipedes are venomous and are carnivores. And while millipedes are usually pretty harmless (unable to bite or anything) the larger ones can secrete this icky bright orange stuff from their sides that they use as a defense mechanism against predators (but you dont have yo worry about that since those are so tiny.)

    I hope someone else can figure out what they are, sorry I cant.

    Carmen

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    What type of soil is good for Spathiphyllum - Peace lily?

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    The millipedes are probably not an issue.

    When I say 'water until it comes out the bottom' I mean pour enough water in there that it drains out. If it doesnt drain, you arent using enough water when you water it.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I was thinking of re potting it because of the millipides. I read somewhere that they feed of the rotting roots. My concern now is are the roots dying? How can I tell if they are rotting? How do I clean them without disturbing them?

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    this is another one..

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    IF your roots are rotting, they will feed off them. Otherwise, they will just feed off the organic material in the potting mix. Again, not a big deal. They are just hanging out in there because it is moist, and they die very quickly without moisture. If it really bothers you a lot, dump a ton of water in there until the soil floods, and they will crawl out of the soil to breathe (please, wait until your next watering to do this). Then you can just pick them out. Might want to do this in the bath tub. Repotting is not going to do anything about the millipedes, unless you remove the soil from the roots which will do more harm than good.

    Here is how you can check the condition of your roots. Question 1. Does the plant (after wilting) perk up after watering? If yes, go to next question. If no- your roots are in trouble. Question 2. Does the plant wilt before the potting mix has dried? If yes, your roots MAY be in trouble. If no- your roots are fine.

    However- this is a spathiphyllum. IMO it would be hard to rot the roots via overwatering. Peace lilies adapt to your watering schedule. The only thing that really damages the roots on one, is over-fertilizing and salt build-up. Or a machete.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Lauraeli thanks for all your help. This is first time I owe one of these this big. I usually have the smaller peace lilies. I never had this issue with any plant.
    After I watered it Tuesday last week it perked up. I'll check today to see if the dirt is a bit dry; i see the plant is wilting a bit. I think my problem was before that I was not watering it enough. Another concerni have too is that maybe is not as straight up as it should be. I'll post a pic after I water it again.

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    A little more information for you- I neglected to water my large spathiphyllum for a bit longer than it likes (it was calculated neglect, I didnt forget about it), and it looked exactly like yours. Wilting flowers, and one turned brown like yours. So, keep up the watering :-) peace lilies love water!

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Lauraeli your awesome! Thanks I need to understand how to take care of my plant. I'll continue watering it. The plant is up for water tomorrow. I'll take it outside to dump alot of water in it and see how is does and bring it back in the house. for the last two days I haven't seen the milipedes. Maybe they die (Hopefully!). I am letting the plant dry enough. Fingers crossed. I have three new leaves coming and another flower on the way. The last thing I want to do is mess with the root. Would it be ok to change the soil without disturbing the root or shoudl I just let it be for the time being?

  • Vance Evans
    9 years ago

    Lany if you are considering repotting it I would recommend you looking at the following thread. Al is an expert on container soils and will help you a lot. I've never had millipedes, but I have had trouble with overwatering my pl. I have 5 pl now and have repotted them using Al's soil mixture, 5-1-1, they are really thriving. Here's the thread

    Here is a link that might be useful: Container Soils - Water Movement and Retention XX

  • Vance Evans
    9 years ago

    Here's another thread on this forum.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Good Growing Practices - An Overview for Beginners

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    Wow I didnt know you could over-water a peace lily! The happiest one I had was watered every day. Though I wouldnt recommend that for all growing conditions.

  • stewartsjon
    9 years ago

    I'm interested by this thread because we just did a huge installation of Spaths in troughs and the soil has these little white fast-moving bugs in them. I'm guessing mine are some kind of thrip, but don't seem to be harming the plants.

  • lauraeli_
    9 years ago

    Springtails. Feed off decaying matter. Like wet conditions. Not harmful to the plant.

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Now I have the millipedes in a different plant that I bought at a different store; it's a Dracaena fragrans;
    corn plant . I had a friend water my plant while i was away; could she have over wattered it? Could it be the soil?

  • Lany1027
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    i changed the soil on both. I even saw some earth worms in the dirt. I am ok with them outside but not inside the house. Some of the millipedes were getting to the roots of the peace lily. Fingers crossed. Hopefully this works if not I might have to get rid of them... :-( I also rinsed the roots just in case.

  • Amanda Carroll
    6 years ago


    found bugs like this in my plant, and it is starting to die! Please help me identify this bug so i can find a solution

  • tropicbreezent
    6 years ago

    That looks more like a centipede, they're carnivores so won't affect the plant. It's probably more the reason they're in there that is causing the problem. They like humid/wet conditions so maybe that's why they've moved in. A female may have laid eggs and now you're getting the hatchlings. And the wet conditions could be affecting the plant. Is the soil fast draining, or does it stay wet/soggy for a long time?

  • Anya Sargeant
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I'm having the same issue with my peace lily and the white millipedes. I live in a basement apartment and the plant is thriving with the current watering regimen but the millipedes in there creep me out! My apartment doesn't get a lot of sunshine for lack of windows so the plant is in a shady area which causes the soil to stay pretty moist for a long period of time. I literally wet my plant every two week because that's when the top soil gets alittle dry. Please help! I love this plant! It's the first one that's growing so beautifully with me. I even repotted it with fresh soil and tried to get rid of all the old soil but I'm seeing the insects more at the top since I've done that.