Maranta leuconeura 'Silver Band' ('Exclusive Grey')

Silver Band name and natural origin

The name 'Momagrey' is used for the plant sold as Silver Band and Exclusive Grey. Maranta leuconeura is native to humid tropical forest in central and eastern Brazil.

Keeping Silver Band healthy

• Light: Use bright indirect or filtered light.
• Watering: During growth, keep the potting mix evenly moist. Water as the surface starts to dry, then let excess water drain freely.
• Humidity: Keep the air humid around the leaves and maintain stable room conditions.
• Temperature: Keep room temperatures above about 15 °C and fairly steady.
• Potting mix: Use a loose peat-free mix that stays evenly moist and drains freely.
• Water quality: Use rainwater if the local tap water contains high levels of fluoride.
• Feeding: Feed lightly as fresh growth develops, following the fertiliser label.
• Repotting: Repot when roots fill the container, the plant starts drying unusually quickly, or the mix compacts.
• Propagation: Split an established plant, keeping roots and several healthy shoots on each section.

Common Silver Band problems

• Yellowing appears together with soft roots and wet compost: Wet compost and soft roots point to root rot. Unpot the plant, remove rotten roots back to firm healthy tissue with a clean disinfected tool, discard the rotten material and repot in fresh free-draining mix.
• Leaf edges turn crisp or the leaves curl more tightly: Check whether the root ball is dry, whether the room air is humid enough and whether cold air reaches the plant. Restore moisture if needed and keep the plant warm.
• Fine pale speckles or webbing appear: Check for spider mites on both sides of the leaves. Isolate the plant and rinse the leaves. If needed, use a product labelled for spider mites and repeat it as the label directs.
• Dry pale patches appear after direct sun: Give the plant filtered light. Existing marks remain visible, so look for healthy new leaves as it grows.
• Brown tips appear across several leaves: Water with high fluoride levels or excess fertiliser can cause leaf burn. Flush the mix, pause feeding and choose rainwater where local tap water has high fluoride levels.

Maranta leuconeura ‘Silver Band’ is non-toxic to people and pets

• This plant is non-toxic to people, cats and dogs.
• Chewing a large amount can still cause an upset stomach.
• If a large amount is eaten and symptoms continue, contact a veterinarian or medical professional.

How the name Maranta leuconeura came about

Maranta commemorates Bartolomeo Maranta. Leuconeura combines Greek leukos, meaning white, with neuron, meaning nerve, and refers to pale venation.

Carl Linnaeus established the genus Maranta in 1753 in Species Plantarum, page 2; Charles Plumier had proposed the name.

Charles Jacques Édouard Morren first described Maranta leuconeura in 1874 in Annales de l’Horticulture Belge et Étrangère, volume 24, page 323.