Ive had my fern for a few weeks now . Seemed to be doing ok, has some new growth on it. Im watering when soil feels dry. I have it 3 feet from window in a corner.

Ive noticed some of the lower leaves aren't as crinkly and are getting lighter in color, a little yellowy. The soil feels quite wet not sodden though

Ive had it next to a humidifier.

Any thoughts as to what might be happening with it? Ive moved away from the humidifier to see if that helps.

Did your plants misbehave? Why are they sitting in a dark corner? Gene

Ha! Not actually that dark. I'm pretty limited as to where i can put them. I have cats that like to chew too.

What do you think is going on with it?

Happy Thanksgiving

Could be too much water/too moist.

I wish I could offer advice but I grow this as an outdoor plant in the ground. The only think I can think of is, I was always told NOT to water the soil on a bird nest fern directly, but to water it more like you would a bromeliad, by trickling water into the rosette on top and letting it kind of spill over some into the dirt. I do not know if this is a truism. This is just what I was told.

https://www.gardeningknowhow.c...
The article says they are epiphytic, meaning they would cling to things with accumulated leaf litter and stuff Makes me think while they like moisture they may also need good aeration for the roots. Maybe water a bit less often. The humidifier I can only imagine is good for all the plants.
I've never owned one though.

Humidifier can be good for tropical plants.

I don't see anything concerning with your Fern. It is normal for some of the older, lower leaves to gradually fade and die back. Your watering routine seems fine and so does the light. I wouldn't recommend any big chances at this point.

This is mine, it grows in the yard in a protected space by the breezeway and I never water it. It only gets water when it rains. It has been there for 16 years. I think it thrives on neglect actually

You southern people ! Here, a house plant is a house plant. I still call it cheating if you grow them outside year 'round.

I'm sure Gene is kidding about "cheating," but he does make an interesting point. Plants that are grown exclusively indoors in colder climates often have different care requirements than the same plant species grown outdoors year-round or through much of the year in warmer climates. Drawing on experiences based on outdoor growth often do not translate well to the indoor care of those same plants. In some ways, it is easier to grow plants outside where they get better light and air circulation. But outside plants are also exposed to a variety of potentially hostile conditions, such as pests, animals, and varying weather conditions.

Both environments have their advantages and disadvantages. Just be careful when extrapolating experiences from one environment to the other.

LOL, Gene!

Gina, I think it would get much bigger if you watered it, but if that would cause it to outgrow its' space, might not be a good thing. Looks like some Syngonium is also creeping around there.

The only time I have trouble with my BNF is if it gets to dry. That causes a row of older leaves to shed.


The original plant of this discussion would probably appreciate more light, if possible.

I know he's joking LOL. Don't forget, practically EVERYTHING I have now in my plant collection (this includes large growing Heliconias, species of ginger and calathea that get 12 feet tall, rainforest palm trees, aroids, bromeliads, orchids...EVERYTHING I now have outdoors or in my greenhouse, were once HOUSEPLANTS. I drug 20 gallon pots in and out in winter for 11 years. Some so heavy (rhizomatous plants are very heavy in a pot) I had to use a dolly. Brought in over 50 orchids and found space for all of them in winter. I even had an 8 x 8 permanent indoor pond (3 feet deep) in my Florida Room for Tropical Water lilies and aquatic aroids. So yes to some extent the culture of a houseplant, an outdoor plant, and a greenhouse plant can be different. But there are insights to be gained into better indoor growing from how plants grow in their natural habitats that cam be useful to everyone

purpleinopp said:LOL, Gene!

Gina, I think it would get much bigger if you watered it, but if that would cause it to outgrow its' space, might not be a good thing. Looks like some Syngonium is also creeping around there.

The only time I have trouble with my BNF is if it gets to dry. That causes a row of older leaves to shed.


The original plant of this discussion would probably appreciate more light, if possible.

Tiffany, I never water anything outdoors. For the last few years we have not had to even consider it....we had a rainy year in 2016, then last year in September we took a direct hit from Hurricane Irma and had flooding on our property. On top of that, it was an extremely rainy year in 2018, unseasonable rain started in the Spring and continued almost daily until September. The water table here has been about 1-2 inches below the surface, and in many places on my property OVER the surface in the form of standing water, ever since Irma. We live in what is technically called hardwood hammock, its a sandy forested area that has all kinds of deciduous and evergreen trees growing very densely packed together. Before the advent of climate change, we had periods of seasonal wet/dry, like its supposed to be. Now we are in a state of almost permanent wet. My neighbor's house is quite a bit lower than mine, he lives in a hollow at the bottom of an elevation drop less than a quarter mile from me. The start of his driveway is level with my land, but it falls maybe 20 feet before it gets to his house. FEMA redrew our floodplain maps, and last year, they put him IN the flood plain whereas I and all the other people on the same road and including the huge housing subdivision next door are not in the floodplain.
I have syngonium growing wild all over my property, several different colors and patterns. The lady who lived here before we bought it decided to just dump her houseplants out in the woods and yard when she moved out and they naturalized.

But isn't that how some invasive species got their start? Someone releases one to the outdoors. Reminds me a way off topic story. About 12 miles from my house is a coal fired power plant. Located near a river, of course. They need cooling water. They have a very large pond that never freezes. Quite a feat for this climate. People, tired of their fresh water aquarium fish, have been know to release them there. Some years ago I read a story about the largest Piranha ever caught in the wild. In that pond ! In Wisconsin. Great trivia question for your friends. Gene

I think along the same lines. To me, if it's outdoors, it's gardening. If its indoors, they are houseplants and I think of it as indoor gardening. It takes a lot of effort to simulate the environment required by the houseplant, inside!

And yes, the opposite is true, Gene, for houseplants. Funny to think that our "houseplants" are weeds somewhere else, lol. Except we don't have to worry about the invasive part (my husband might argue that point...)

That is totally true Gene. It is illegal here in Florida to possess water lettuce or water hyacinth, out of state sellers can't send it here and in state growers are not allowed to grow and sell it. The fines can be hefty. It has gotten loose in natural waterways and completely clogged them. Even some of the springs have been inundated with water lettuce. While they have never banned it, the common green running elephant ear (Colocasia escuelenta, sometimes called 'Green Goddess') is so invasive that they really discourage people from planting it. Few nurseries will carry it. It grows in many ditches, by the road, wild. Same with Ardesia (coral berry). Very invasive. So many plants may die back in a cold winter but they pop right back out and grow with a vengeance come spring. We have a lake here that is owned by the University that has the same problem your pond has....someone thought it was a great place to dump an aquarium full of those African cichlids in there years ago and they have taken over the lake. The only thing in there more dominant than them are the 10 foot gators.
I think of my greenhouse as a house. Its just a house with better light, better humidity, better air circulation, more water and the ability to be kept warm. But its still a house. It has 4 walls, and while its an improvement on my real house, its not a perfect environment. My plants get the same pests that other people's house plants get. My plants can get bacterial, fungal and viral diseases like other people's can. Not all of my plants are in the ground. Some are containerized and can have the same issue with overwatering, or under watering. Its not always easy to keep everything looking good or healthy. Algae and molds are a problem. Its an ongoing project. And I have had some stellar failures in the past. I've also had some sweet successes. I have a feeling that in 20-30 years, everyone in the US will have moved up at least 2 climate zones and things not thought growable outdoors in many places will be growable then. Miami will be under water and the 'tropics' will have moved up from Cuba and Puerto Rico and start at the Tampa/Orlando line. And I will probably be dead because I am an old fart and I won't get to see it.

Good point, Gina1960- the greenhouse has to be balanced too, only in a different way! Someday I would love to have a big greenhouse and have all sorts of moss and orchids hanging and hoyas vining. And lighting so I could walk through it at night, and of course a sitting area, and some running water of some form. Would be so relaxing. Wired speakers for relaxing background music...

P.S. I don't think the climate will be that way in 20-30 years. That seems like a scary thought sent to the public for us to worry and not enjoy the present.

AlyssaBlue said:Good point, Gina1960- the greenhouse has to be balanced too, only in a different way! Someday I would love to have a big greenhouse and have all sorts of moss and orchids hanging and hoyas vining. And lighting so I could walk through it at night, and of course a sitting area, and some running water of some form. Would be so relaxing. Wired speakers for relaxing background music...

P.S. I don't think the climate will be that way in 20-30 years. That seems like a scary thought sent to the public for us to worry and not enjoy the present.

There's a dichotomy in your post. First you admit the need for maintaining balance in your greenhouse. Then deny the very same need to maintain balance in nature, that it's just a scare tactic.

Science, has shown the impact of carbon emissions since the onset of the industrial revolution and the use of fossil fuels. That is human made climate change. We have overwhelmed nature's ability to balance the amount of CO2 we create and it's ability to mitigate it.

You seem content to "enjoy the present." I'm not, I'm concerned for what we leave the following generations. I'm an old fart too and won't be around to feel the full effects. I have children and hopefully I'll have grandchildren that will have to clean up the mess, if it can be by then. I can enjoy the present more if I know we are actively trying to start the changes now.

I have lived in Florida for 26 years. We came here from Southern California and before that we were both from Texas. The changes I have seen here in Florida in the time we have lived here have truly been fast moving and very frightening.

I am able to have plants planted out in my yard now that would never have survives a winter here 20 years ago. I know this because, I used to own a tropical plant nursery which I operated for 8 years. I did it the old fashioned way, I took plants from my collection, propagated them myself, grew them out, and sold my 'overage'. This gave me money to collect more different plants and do the same thing. I had to close the nursery not because I wanted to or because it wasn't successful, but because of family matters that needed my 24/7 attention for about the last 10 years (acting as a caregiver ti another family member). So I still had overage, but was not selling it or going to plant trades anymore. So I would plant it outside. Some things I knew were toast (Alipnia purpurata, Etlingera elatior, philodendrons etc) but some things surprisingly survived especially in later years. This fern is one of those things. It looks smaller in the photo but it actually has a spread of about 24 inches. It has never suffered frost or freeze damage in the protected space. Other things are some more cold sensitive vines (Thungergia), Erythina christa-gallei, sansevierra, some not particularly cold hardy bromeliads in the yard, etc I can't think of some of the stuff now. But it is definitely different than when we first came here