Can Asparagus Fern Be Grown in Water? The Latest Answer Is Here
Besides being made into bonsai, can asparagus fern be grown in water? There is currently quite a bit of debate online about whether asparagus fern can be grown in water. Some flower enthusiasts believe it cannot: the asparagus fern's leaves are scale-like and transpire little water, so over time the leaves turn yellow and dry up and the roots begin to die. But other flower enthusiasts have seen cases of successful water culture online. Let's take a look together below and see whether asparagus fern can really be grown in water!
Can Asparagus Fern Be Grown in Water?
Asparagus fern can be grown in water. The asparagus fern has an elegant plant shape and delicate, graceful leaf-like branches, making it an excellent choice for water culture. Moreover, water culture of asparagus fern is simpler to care for than soil planting and has a high survival rate, but it does involve a certain degree of difficulty in execution.
When growing asparagus fern in water, note that only two-thirds to three-quarters of the roots should be submerged in water, with the rest exposed to the air. Do not submerge all the roots in water, otherwise the roots will rot.
Water Culture Method for Asparagus Fern
1. Select a robust, well-developed asparagus fern as the mother plant material for water culture. Take the asparagus fern out of the pot together with the soil, carefully wash the soil off its roots, remove rotten roots, and trim off some old roots. Rinse the leaves and the plant clean with clear water, avoiding injuring the plant. Asparagus fern roots take time to form, so be careful when taking out the asparagus fern and do not damage its roots.
2. Fix the cleaned plant in a planting basket, making sure its roots are fully spread out when fixing it; then place the plant together with the planting basket into a 1‰ carbendazim solution and soak the roots for 30 minutes. Put it in a cool place, and once the root system becomes soft you can proceed to the next step.
3. Pour asparagus fern-specific nutrient solution into the nutrient solution tank, and plant the treated plant from above on a floating board (be careful to keep part of the root system exposed to the air). Spray water on the leaves twice a day. At a suitable temperature of 15-25°C, new roots will grow in two weeks, at which point you need to supplement foliage fertilizer once every week.
4. After three to four weeks, the asparagus fern's root system has grown a lot of new roots, and at this point we can transfer it to a bottle for static water culture. It is best to use ceramsite to fix it in place.
5. Asparagus fern likes a semi-humid environment. Generally place it near a window with light, but not in a spot with direct sunlight, and keep it ventilated. Under the container, still place a tray with water and replenish the water frequently.
6. For water culture of asparagus fern, it is best to use asparagus fern-specific nutrient solution. Caring for asparagus fern in water culture is much easier than soil planting. Usually you only need to pay attention to changing the water: about 7-10 days in summer and about 20 days in winter, and supplement nutrient solution each time you change the water.
Shaping Methods for Water-Cultured Asparagus Fern
1. Pot control method: the size ratio of the flower pot to the plant should be 1:3. This can limit root growth and keep the plant shape and size unchanged.
2. Remove growing points: when new buds grow to 2-3cm, remove the growing points. This can promote new branches and leaves on the stems, and can control it from growing vines, so that the branches and leaves spread out flat and the plant shape keeps becoming fuller.
3. Use the asparagus fern's phototropism: turn the direction of the flower pot at the right time to correct the growth shape of the branches and leaves and keep the plant shape unchanged.
4. Object shading method: use a piece of cardboard to press down on the branches and leaves or block the sunlight, so that when the branches and leaves grow, upon touching the object blocking them, the stems turn or bend as they grow, thereby achieving the purpose of shaping.