Spathiphyllum

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Ordo: Alismatales

Familia: Araceae
Subfamilia: Monsteroideae
Genus: Spathiphyllum
Name

Spathiphyllum Schott in Schott & Endl., Melet. Bot.: 22. 1832.

Type species: Spathiphyllum lanceifolium (Jacq.) Schott, Melet. Bot.: 22. 1832.

Synonymy

Heterotypic
Hydnostachyon Liebm., Vidensk. Meddel. Naturhist. Foren. Kjøbenhavn 1849: 23 (1849).
Massowia K.Koch, Bot. Zeitung (Berlin) 10: 277 (1852).
Spathiphyllopsis Teijsm. & Binn., Natuurk. Tijdschr. Ned.-Indië 25: 400 (1863).
Amomophyllum Engl., Gard. Chron., n.s., 7: 139 (1877).
Leucochlamys Poepp. ex Engl. in A.L.P.de Candolle & A.C.P.de Candolle, Monogr. Phan. 2: 230 (1879).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Asia-Tropical
Malesia
Maluku, Philippines, Sulawesi.
Papuasia
Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea, Solomon Islands.
Pacific
Northwestern Pacific
Caroline Islands.
Northern America
Mexico
Mexico Gulf, Mexico Southwest, Mexico Southeast.
Southern America
Central America
Belize, Costa Rica, C. American Pacific Islands, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama.
Caribbean
Trinidad-Tobago.
Northern South America
French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela.
Western South America
Colombia, Ecuador, Peru.
Brazil
Brazil West-Central, Brazil Northeast, Brazil Southeast, Brazil North.

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
Overview of species
Accepted species

S. abelianum – S. atrovirens – S. barbourii – S. bariense – S. blandum – S. brent-berlinii – S. brevirostre – S. buntingianum – S. cannifolium – S. cochlearispathum – S. commutatum – S. cuspidatum – S. diazii – S. dressleri – S. floribundum – S. friedrichsthalii – S. fulvovirens – S. gardneri – S. gracile – S. grandifolium – S. grazielae – S. humboldtii – S. jejunum – S. juninense – S. kalbreyeri – S. laeve – S. lanceifolium – S. lechlerianum – S. maguirei – S. matudae – S. mawarinumae – S. minus – S. monachinoi – S. montanum – S. neblinae – S. ortgiesii – S. patinii – S. patulinervum – S. perezii – S. phryniifolium – S. pygmaeum – S. quindiuense – S. schlechteri – S. schomburgkii – S. silvicola – S. solomonense – S. tenerum – S. uspanapaensis – S. wallisii – S. wendlandii

Source(s) of checklist:
List based on accepted species according to World Checklist of Selected Plant Families – see references.
Names in synonymy

S. amazonicum – S. beccarii – S. bonplandii – S. candicans – S. candidum – S. candolleanum – S. canniforme – S. caudatum – S. dechardii – S. fendleri – S. funereum – S. glaziovii – S. heliconiifolium – S. huberi – S. kochii – S. lacustre – S. lanceolatum – S. liebmannii – S. liesneri – S. longirostre – S. macrophyllum – S. micronesicum – S. minahassae – S. pictum – S. sagittifolium – S. sipapoanum – S. zetekianum
References

Schott, H.W. & Endlicher, S.L. 1832. Meletemata Botanica. C. Gerold, Wien. 36 pp. BHL Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2016. Spathiphyllum. Published online. Accessed: 05 February 2016.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2016. Spathiphyllum in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2016 February 05. Reference page.
Farr, E.R. & Zijlstra, G. (eds.) 1996 onwards. Spathiphyllum in Index Nominum Genericorum (Plantarum). Accessed: 2016 February 05.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Spathiphyllum in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 2016-02-05.
Tropicos.org 2016. Spathiphyllum. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 05 February 2016.

Vernacular names
Deutsch: Scheidenblatt
English: Spath
Esperanto: Spatifilo
suomi: Viirivehkat
עברית: ספטיפיליום
magyar: Vitorlavirágok
italiano: Spatafillo
日本語: スパティフィラム属
lietuvių: Vėzdūnė
Nederlands: Lepelplant
polski: Skrzydłokwiat
русский: Спатифиллюм
slovenščina: Spatifil
svenska: Fredskallasläktet

Spathiphyllum is a genus of about 47 species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the family Araceae, native to tropical regions of the Americas and southeastern Asia. Certain species of Spathiphyllum are commonly known as spath or peace lilies.

They are evergreen herbaceous perennial plants with large leaves 12–65 cm long and 3–25 cm broad. The flowers are produced in a spadix, surrounded by a 10–30 cm long, white, yellowish, or greenish spathe. The plant does not need large amounts of light or water to survive.

Etymology

Schott's description of the genus refers to Spatha foliaris persistens,[2] where spatha is a spathe, and foliaris is an adjective modifying spathe, meaning relating to a leaf, and persistens means continuing or persisting. Phyllum also means a leaf.[3]
Selected species

Species include:[4]

Spathiphyllum atrovirens
Spathiphyllum bariense
Spathiphyllum blandum
Spathiphyllum brevirostre
Spathiphyllum cannifolium
Spathiphyllum cochlearispathum
Spathiphyllum commutatum
Spathiphyllum cuspidatum
Spathiphyllum floribundum
Spathiphyllum friedrichsthalii
Spathiphyllum fulvovirens
Spathiphyllum gardneri
Spathiphyllum grandifolium
Spathiphyllum jejunum
Spathiphyllum juninense
Spathiphyllum kalbreyeri
Spathiphyllum kochii
Spathiphyllum laeve
Spathiphyllum lechlerianum
Spathiphyllum maguirei
Spathiphyllum mawarinumae
Spathiphyllum monachinoi
Spathiphyllum montanum
Spathiphyllum neblinae
Spathiphyllum ortgiesii
Spathiphyllum patini
Spathiphyllum perezii
Spathiphyllum phryniifolium
Spathiphyllum quindiuense
Spathiphyllum silvicola
Spathiphyllum solomonense
Spathiphyllum wallisii
Spathiphyllum wendlandii

Cultivated hybrids include:[5]

Spathiphyllum × clevelandii

Cultivation and uses

Several species are popular indoor houseplants. It lives best in shade and needs little sunlight to thrive, and is watered approximately once a week. The soil is best left moist but only needs watering if the soil is dry. The NASA Clean Air Study found that Spathiphyllum cleans certain gaseous environmental contaminants, including benzene and formaldehyde.[6] However, subsequent tests have shown this cleaning effect is far too small to be practical.[7]

The cultivar 'Mauna Loa' has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[8]
Toxicity

Although it is called a "lily", the peace lily is not a true lily from the family Liliaceae. True lilies are highly toxic (poisonous) to cats and dogs,[9][10] but the peace lily, spathiphyllum is only mildly toxic to humans and other animals when ingested.[11][12] It contains calcium oxalate crystals, which can cause skin irritation, a burning sensation in the mouth, difficulty swallowing, and nausea,[13] but it does not contain the toxins found in true lilies, which could cause acute kidney failure in cats and some other animals.[14]
In Popular Culture

The 7th track on Mother Earth's Plantasia, an early electronic album that was composed for plants to listen to, is "Swingin' Spathiphyllums".

Simon Pegg's character PC Nicholas Angel in the movie Hot Fuzz has a peace lily that appears in several scenes and is referred to throughout the film. Angel's dedication to caring for the peace lily serves to symbolize his highly structured lifestyle and by-the-book approach to policing, which he abandons when he shatters the plant over the head of Michael "Lurch" Armstrong.