saving a bird's nest fern
A Bird's Nest Fern has leaves that grow out of a central nest. It doesn't look like a usual fern with many small leaves on a stem. The only fern resemblance I see comes from the crinkled/bulging of the leaves. I've read that water down the nest could rot it. One day the edges were blackening, and after watering with distilled water, the next morning they turned green and light yellow. I repotted it in an enclosed terrarium since it likes high humidity and heat. I'm not sure how well it's doing yet and will provide an update.
12/28 Update: I saw some more of these and picked up a new one. When I compared the roots of both, this one had only an inch of roots left. I suspect they rotted away from overwatering/sitting in wet soil, so the remainder of this one is one small leaf attached to an almost bare nest, attached to an inch of roots. I stuck it in another terrarium (an open one) to see how it can fare. I planted the new one and will see if there's better luck with that one. Hoping.
1/6 Update: This one seems to be alive still. I don't keep the lid on this one. Its leaves are crinkly and less smooth since it doesn't get as much light in the kitchen with inconsistent bursts of fluorescent light. I like them crinkly though. It sits beneath an air vent so it's getting heat...I mist it to give it humidity. Mr. Rabbit is keeping a close eye on this one.
#plant #terrarium #fern
12/28 Update: I saw some more of these and picked up a new one. When I compared the roots of both, this one had only an inch of roots left. I suspect they rotted away from overwatering/sitting in wet soil, so the remainder of this one is one small leaf attached to an almost bare nest, attached to an inch of roots. I stuck it in another terrarium (an open one) to see how it can fare. I planted the new one and will see if there's better luck with that one. Hoping.
1/6 Update: This one seems to be alive still. I don't keep the lid on this one. Its leaves are crinkly and less smooth since it doesn't get as much light in the kitchen with inconsistent bursts of fluorescent light. I like them crinkly though. It sits beneath an air vent so it's getting heat...I mist it to give it humidity. Mr. Rabbit is keeping a close eye on this one.
