Morphological Characteristics of Maidenhair Fern and Four-Season Care for Growing Maidenhair Fern
Maidenhair fern, also known as tiexiancao or meirenfen, is a plant commonly grown at home. Let us now take a look at how to grow maidenhair fern.
The fronds of maidenhair fern grow from the base, resembling an opened paper folding fan. The leaf stalk is purplish-black, thin and hard like an iron wire, hence the name. It likes a warm, shady and moist environment and acidic soil, and fears strong light.
The fronds of maidenhair fern are small and dense, layered upon one another, elegant and graceful. It likes shade and can be placed indoors in a spot with diffused light for growing and viewing. It can also be placed on windowsills without direct sunlight, beside the bed, on desks, dining tables, flower stands, tea tables, dressing tables, and in bathrooms. When the plant is small, it can be placed on a curio shelf. Below is a detailed introduction on how to grow maidenhair fern.
Morphological Characteristics
Maidenhair fern is a perennial herb with a plant height of 15-40 cm. Its rhizome is slender and creeping horizontally, densely covered with brown lanceolate scales. Its fronds are distant or approximate; the stalk is usually 5-20 cm long, about 1 mm thick, relatively slender, chestnut-black in color with a glossy surface. Its base is covered with the same scales as those on the rhizome. The blade is ovate-triangular, 10-25 cm long and 8-16 cm wide, with a pointed tip.
Growth Habits
In the wild, maidenhair fern mostly grows on moist rocks in streamside valleys. It likes warm, humid and semi-shady cool environments, is not cold-tolerant, and avoids direct sunlight. It likes loose, fertile and calcareous sandy loam.
For potting soil, equal parts of loam, leaf mold and river sand can be mixed together. Note that liquid fertilizer should be applied once a week, and the potting soil should be kept moist with appropriate air humidity. In the dry autumn and winter seasons, water can often be sprinkled on the ground around the plant to increase air humidity.
Soil Selection for Growing Maidenhair Fern
Maidenhair fern likes loose, fertile acidic soil. At home, the following formulas can be used: garden soil : leaf mold : sand = 4:5:1; peat soil : leaf mold : sand = 4:4:2.
Fertilization Methods for Growing Maidenhair Fern
Maidenhair fern does not have a high fertilizer demand; generally, applying diluted liquid fertilizer once a month is sufficient. If a small amount of calcium fertilizer is applied, the growth will be even better. However, note that when watering and fertilizing, the leaf surface should not be splashed, otherwise the leaves are prone to turning yellow, affecting the ornamental effect.
Watering Methods for Growing Maidenhair Fern
Maidenhair fern likes warm, humid and semi-shady environments. During the growing season, it needs watering once a day. In hot summer, it should be watered once in the morning and once in the evening each day, and at the same time water should be sprayed on the leaf surface and the ground around the flower pot to increase air humidity. Only in this way can the leaf color remain emerald green. If water supply is insufficient or the air is dry, the leaves will turn yellow or the edges will curl and scorch. To keep the leaf color emerald green, it is best to place the flower pot on a moist sand tray for maintenance.
Four-Season Care for Growing Maidenhair Fern
(1) Spring Management
In April, maidenhair fern can be repotted; maidenhair fern is repotted once a year. Maidenhair fern likes shade and moisture and fears strong light. In early spring, there should be appropriate morning and evening light. In spring, it should be placed indoors with bright diffused light.
After maidenhair fern begins to grow in spring, attention should be paid to water and fertilizer management. When placed indoors, special attention should be paid to increasing indoor air humidity. Increasing indoor air humidity is the key to growing maidenhair fern at home. Regularly applying ferrous sulfate can not only increase soil acidity, which is beneficial to its growth, but also make the leaves more emerald green.
(2) Summer Management
The high temperature, strong light and dry climate of summer are not suitable for the growth of maidenhair fern. It should be placed indoors in a bright spot for cultivation, keeping the potting soil moist, and at the same time spraying water around it frequently to increase air humidity. Do not fertilize when the weather is hot. Maidenhair fern fears wind, so it should not be placed in front of an electric fan or at an air conditioner vent. Rooms with air conditioning have lower air humidity, so the frequency of spraying should be increased.
How to Grow Maidenhair Fern
(3) Autumn Management
In autumn, maidenhair fern can still grow normally, and attention should be paid to water and fertilizer management. After the temperature drops in late autumn, attention should be paid to maintaining indoor temperature, gradually reducing the amount of watering so that the potting soil remains moist, and gradually moving it to a spot with morning and evening light for cultivation.
(4) Winter Management
Maidenhair fern is not cold-tolerant, and the room temperature should be kept above 5°C. At this time, the growth of maidenhair fern is in a stagnant state, and the leaf color is dark green. Morning and evening light can be appropriately increased (avoiding strong midday light), watering should be reduced so that the potting soil is on the dry side, and no fertilizer should be applied.
When the indoor temperature is kept above 10%, maidenhair fern still grows well with bright green leaves. The potting soil should be kept moist, but no fertilizer should be applied. When the indoor temperature is higher, the air humidity will be relatively lower, so attention should be paid to supplementing air humidity.
The above is the related introduction in this article. I believe that after reading it, you also have a simple understanding of this. If needed, you can continue to follow Yihao Home Network to learn more information.