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

Natural origin and houseplant history

A broad pale band along the centre of each leaf gives Silver Band its identity and separates it from fine-veined forms such as Light Veins. The selection ‘Momagrey’ is sold under both Silver Band and Exclusive Grey, making those two names equivalent in cultivation.

Like other Maranta leuconeura forms, it descends from a species native to the wet-tropical forests of Brazil’s central and eastern regions. Wild plants spread sideways along the forest floor through underground stems. ‘Momagrey’ retains this low growth and adds the selected silver-grey band.

Care for humidity-sensitive foliage

• Feeding and division: Use dilute feed only while growth is steady; cut back in slow periods. Divide rooted rhizome sections to produce new plants with the same selected pattern.
• Settling period: Shield Silver Band from temperature and light swings after transport. Allow the leaves to return to their normal position and watering needs to settle before making other changes.
• Light: Provide bright indirect light. Direct midday sun can bleach or scorch the broad pale centre, while insufficient light produces sparse, stretched growth.
• Water and salts: Water when the top layer begins to dry, then empty all drainage water. The spreading rhizomes must not remain saturated. If margins repeatedly brown, use low-mineral water and occasionally run plenty of clean water through the pot.
• Substrate: Choose a fine organic medium that stays porous, paired with a broad container that follows the plant’s lateral growth.
• Warmth and air: Protect the plant from cold and keep temperatures steady. Moderate to high humidity helps the leaves develop, while gentle circulation lets any water on them dry promptly.

Prayer plant problems and fixes

• Pale central band: The broad silver-grey centre is normal cultivar colour. Sunburn forms sharper bleached or tan patches, usually on the most exposed side.
• Night-time posture: Leaves naturally lift and reposition after dark. Water need must be checked in the root ball rather than inferred from posture.
• Rolling in daylight: Drought, direct heat, dry air and root damage can all cause rolling. Wet decayed roots can mimic thirst, so inspect before watering.
• Brown tips: Check moisture consistency, mineral accumulation, fertiliser concentration, humidity and root health. Lower-mineral water is useful only when salts are involved.
• Soft yellow leaves with wet substrate: Drain completely and restore air around the rhizomes.
• Mites, thrips and mealybugs: Mites cause fine stippling and webbing; thrips leave silvery scars and black specks; mealybugs form cottony clusters. Isolate the plant before targeted control.
• Irregular mosaic: The silver centre should remain stable. Isolate new mottling that breaks this layout and develops with stunting, distortion or dead tissue.
• Leaf spots: Scattered damp-looking lesions that expand indicate leaf-spot damage rather than a change in the stable silver centre. Remove affected leaves, keep irrigation off the foliage and improve air movement.

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.