I want to grow my prayer plant out on porch. Is that possible?
They can be placed in a shady location outdoors in summer, but do not thrive year round outside unless you happen to live in a tropical-like climate. They cannot tolerate temps below 60 degree F.
My prayer plant doesn't close at night. What's wrong?
Are you sure it's a prayer plant? Look up maranta (the botanical name) in a plant guide to see if it looks like yours. Or, maybe its not dark enough at night where you have it.
What are prayer plants?
This article should help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/prayer-plant/maranta-prayer-plant-peacock-plant.htm
My plant was looking sad and rootbound so I am repotting it now and found small sacs/nodules attached to some roots. Some are firm and some have flattened out and are empty. Is this some kind of nematode that I don't want in the pot or is it part of the prayer plant's normal root system?
These are just nodules the plant uses to store extra energy. They are fine to leave when repotting.
Why doesn't my 'Prayer Plant' close at night?
Some species of maranta don't fold leaves as others. My observation is that the "fishbone" doesn't pray like "rabbit tracks". Also, does the plant get artificial light at night? This may keep your plant from praying. This link has good information on care of prayer plants: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/prayer-plant/maranta-prayer-plant-peacock-plant.htm
What causes a prayer plant's leaves to curl up? My plant has increasingly curled up and I wonder if it's dying. The leaves are still good color.
Are they curling or folding together? Folding together is normal for a prayer plant and is where their name comes from (because the leaves fold like hands in prayer). If they are curling, as in rolling up, this could indicate that it is either not getting enough light or that the plant is not getting enough water. Check these two things.
I have a "Marisela" prayer plant, and every single time I let direct sun shine on the plant one or two leaves will curl up. It likes good light but no direct sun. Even after I move the plant out of the sun it takes hours for the leaves to uncurl. Move it a couple feet in from the window, or use a sheer curtain to filter the light.
How do I treat these bugs to get rid of them? Also, do I treat all my other plants? I have a tall prayer plant. I just found tiny pin hole size bugs under the leaves and could see one of the tiny bugs crawling on the stalk. I removed all I could see. There was also a salty feeling to these things. What are they?
I suspect that you're seeing spider mites. Prayer plants are quite susceptible to them. When you treat the plant, you should also spray any nearby plants, and make sure to spray 4 times at 7 - 10 day intervals. This is to make sure you get all the little critters as they hatch, since eggs are not affected by treatments. Here is the article that tells you how to deal with these (and even if they aren't spider mites, neem oil will rid your plants of whatever they may be:) https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/insects/spider-mite-treatment.htm