How To Grow And Care For A Staghorn Fern

The Staghorn Fern is an unusual looking plant. It was given quite an appropriate name due to its strange looking leaves, which are technically called fronds. This plant is native to Tropical Australia and New Guinea.

They grow on trees and can get as large at three or four feet. They can also be grown in other tropical places such as Florida or Hawaii. This plant has two types of leaves, fertile and sterile which do different things. The sterile leaves are actually found on the base that the fertile leaves hang from.

You can pick up this fern from assorted nurseries across the south, southwest, west and more tropical warm areas. This plant does not flower, but it does reproduce by shedding spores that are then spread by wind and attach onto other trees.

Staghorn ferns grow best in climates that don’t provide direct sunlight. That is why they grow on the trunks of trees. Leaves and branches from the trees filter sunlight and allow shade and a cooler climate for the plants to thrive.

They grow best in temperatures between 60 and 80 degrees and where the temperature does not drop below 40 degree’s in winter months. This is why southern and tropical type climates are the best for this type of plant.

Along with the tropical or southern climates, this fern thrives in humid conditions. There is no need to water its leaves directly because watering or spraying can cause water spots to develop on leaves.

The best way to water a Staghorn fern is to dunk the plant in a tub of water and then allow it to dry off. If you feel you must fertilize, use a little sea kelp behind the fronds. Sea kelp is organic, natural and not a problem to handle.

You can pot Staghorn ferns, but it is not required. This type of plant is “one of Gods true creations”, meaning that it seems to just be like the wind, the rivers, the oceans and the sky. They just pop out of the rugged bark of tree trunks and begin living, thriving and reproducing, using spores and the wind.

These interesting ferns use trees as a support system, not for total nutrition. They get their nutrition by trapping debris such as discarded plant materials and dead insects that get secured by the base of the frond and absorbed through that area of the plant.

In places like central Florida, these ferns can be seen growing in containers hanging from tree trunks. In other instances, if you look closely you will see that they are actually growing out of the tree trunks. You can also attach the ferns to pieces of flat wood and use them to decorate porches and gardens. You can grow these ferns indoors, but they prefer a greenhouse atmosphere

The Staghorn fern really thrives in temperatures of 70 degrees and where it is not below 50 degrees at night. When you find this fern growing in a clump, you can harvest it for transplant.

The Staghorn fern has tiny gray scales, which limit evaporation. While they look like dust, they are not and should not be dusted off as they help the plant survive. The Staghorn feed’s itself from nutrients and moisture from the air. Once growing in the outdoors, it is completely self-sufficient.

If you want to grow a Staghorn in your house, the best place to do so is in a humid location like a bathroom, over the kitchen sink or in the laundry room. The roots of this plant will rot very easily, so be careful not to over water. A good way to plant the fern is to put it in a hanging basket filled with coarse tree bark.

Make sure that wherever you are growing your Staghorn, it will have plenty of room to grow. This plant can grow quite large and will need room to spread out. You do have to keep an eye out so that scale insects don’t become a pest on your Staghorn.

If your plant becomes infested with insects, run it under tap water. If too large for the kitchen sink, put it in the tub, rinse and then shake gently to remove any excess water from the leaves. If you follow these simple steps, you can expect your Staghorn to grow, thrive and even produce baby Staghorns in the future.

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