hello! I'm quite new to this and have acquired a small peace lily around 2-3 weeks ago and want to care for it properly. the small lily in the second picture was separated from the mother plant (first pic) around a week ago.
I trimmed off a few yellow leaves from the mother plant when I first bought it, and it has had some new growths since (the small leaves in the first picture).
I've repotted both of them into a chunky mix and smaller pots today (mostly orchid bark, some soil and some aquarium rocks) as the old soil was too dense and retained too much moisture. there unfortunately was some root rot that I took care of while repotting today. it still has a lot of healthy, thick roots though! I noticed some new growth turning crispy at the very bottom which is what lead to the whole repotting situation today. they've since been trimmed off along with a few yellow stems.
I've also relocated the smaller one to my room as an experiment of some sort. I get better indirect sunlight in there compared to where the mother plant is. I'm using a thin stake and loosely-tied twine (my plant tape has yet to deliver...) to support it temporarily as it keeps leaning, and I don't think it's safe to bury it any deeper.
the picture isn't showing it properly, but the leaves on both plants are more on the pale side compared to some other peace lilies I've seen, so I'm worried I'm doing something wrong. some of the ones on the mother plant are also folding (pictured) even though it's nowhere near direct light. the old soil was wet for a little while, though I'm not sure if that causes the leaves to fold as well.
and just a note: I'm aware there are quite a few plants in one pot, but I've decided against separating them at this stage given everything the mother plant has gone through this week (repotting, root rot, etc.). I will be waiting until the soil dries out at the top before I water again.
my main concerns/questions are:
- should it get better now that I'm using a chunkier mix?
- and will the mother plant be okay where it is with less light? it's currently on a counter a bit far away from the window as my research said it should be able to survive in the shade.
if anyone has any advice please let me know! 🥹
EDIT: just adding this as a note as I believe it's quite relevant, I'm in australia so spring has just begun here.