Bird's Nest Fern How to Grow Care Guide

Bird’s Nest Fern

Asplenium nidus

Birds Nest Fern

The Bird’s Nest fern is native to the rain forests of Asia, Africa, and Australia which explains why high humidity is essential for it to thrive. This fern has long, erect, leathery, apple-green fronds that never split like those of a Kimberly Queen fern or a Maidenhair fern. The wide rippled leaves of a Bird’s Nest fern emerge from a central rosette or crown that looks like a fuzzy brown funnel. When the new fronds first emerge they resemble little bird eggs which is why we call it a Bird’s Nest fern. It’s important to never get water on the crown or it will develop plant diseases. The tongue shaped fronds of a Bird’s Nest fern are fragile so put it where it can’t be bumped. The unique attractive Bird’s Nest fern requires quite a bit of care and is not a good plant for beginners.

Bird’s Nest Fern

Light

A Bird’s Nest fern does well in medium indirect light. The distinctive bright green leaves become pale when exposed to too much light. Direct sun causes unsightly burn marks on the leaves.

Water

Keep the soil moist but never soggy at all times.

Fertilizer

fertilizerPlants need fertilizer only when they are actively growing. Slow growing plants in low light require very little plant food. Too much fertilizer is worse than not enough. Most plants prefer a water soluble plant food at 1/2 the recommended strength. Plants that are in bloom or dormant should not be fertilized. Houseplant food contains nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). A fertilizer containing these elements in equal proportion is considered a balanced plant food. Nitrogen helps in photosynthesis and encourages the growth of leaves and stems. Potassium and phosphorus also help in photosynthesis and aid in root and flower development. Most fertilizers have trace elements of other minerals that are lacking in the soil but are necessary for good plant growth. Fertilizers have a high salt content. If a plant is not producing new leaves and doesn’t absorb the fertilizer, salts build up in the soil. These salts can burn the roots, discolor the leaves, and cause new growth to be small. once or twice in the spring and summer, when the fern is actively growing. Over-fertilization causes more problems for a Bird's Nest fern than never fertilizing at all. Use a balanced plant food diluted to 1/2 the recommended strength.

Temperature

A Bird's Nest fern likes temperatures between 70°-90°F (21.1°-32.2°C) during the day and about 10° cooler at night. These ferns grow slowly when the temperature is not within this range and leaves are damaged by hot or cold drafts. The base of the fronds turn yellow when the temperature is too warm.

Humidity

High humidity is essential. The higher the humidity the longer the fronds grow, indoors this can be up to 18” and outdoors 3ft-4 ft. Lack of humidity causes major problems: the entire leaf may turn yellow, the tips of the leaves may turn brown, and the plant may stop growing. If the humidity in your home is too low, consider putting your fern on a wet pebble tray, be sure the plant is sitting on pebbles and not in the water.

Pests

A Bird's Nest fern is susceptible to Mealy BugsLearn how to identify and treat Mealy Bugs, a houseplant pest that leaves sticky, white, cottony residue on houseplants., scaleSoft Brown Scale is the most common scale that attacks indoor houseplants especially ficus, ivy, spider plants, ferns, aralia, and schefflera. It appears as small bumpy brown spots that appear to move. As the scale sucks on the sap of the plant it secretes a sticky substance called honeydew. The honeydew attracts black mildew. Because of the shell-like exterior, sprays are only partially effective against scale. Wipe off the lines of brown oval bumps with your finger, a cloth, or a child’s toothbrush then spray the plant with Neem Oil. Use the Green Solution to clean off the black mildew., and AphidsSee a picture, learn to identify, and read about Aphid houseplant pests in the Glossary of Houseplant411.com.. Use a Qtip dipped in alcohol to treat Plant PestLearn how to identify and treat the plant pest called Whitefly at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary/whitefly-plant-pestss near or on the crown; never spray any liquid directly on the crown.

Diseases

Misting encourages bacterial and fungal infections such as Erwinia Blight. The leaves should always be kept dry.

Soil

Bird's Nest ferns grow well in a soil high in organic material that holds water but is still loose and not heavy and clay-like.

Pot Size

As a Bird's Nest fern grows and its roots fill the existing container, re-pot to the next size container. Be sure there are drip holes in the bottom of any pot you use.

Propagation

These ferns are propagated by spores and tissue culture and cannot be propagated by plant divisionLearn how to propagate plants by plant division at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary like many other ferns. Under absolutely perfect conditions, tiny baby offsetsHouseplant offsets, or pups as they are sometimes called, are the baby plants that form at the base of certain houseplants.Plant offsets can be used to easily propagate new plants. Wait until the plant offsets have grown at least several inches, then gently detach them from the "mother"plant. Hopefully the plant offsets will have a few roots of their own at this point. Plant the offsets in a small container and keep the plant barely moist but never soggy at all times. may appear below the mature leaves; these can be used for propagationLearn how to propagate plants by plant division at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary. In most cases, propagationLearn how to propagate plants by plant division at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary is best left to the professionals.

Poisonous Plant Info

Bird's Nest Ferns are non- Poisonous HouseplantsIn her new book, Don’t Feed Me to Your Cat!, plant care professional Judy Feldstein shares information about twenty-five common houseplants, each with various levels of toxicity, and the possible consequences if your pet or child snacks on them..

What is the long line of dots on the underside of all of the leaves of my Bird’s Nest fern? Does my fern have plant scale?

I’m guessing that the brown spots on the leaves of your Bird's Nest fern are spores, which is how the plant propagates in the wild. If your Bird's Nest fern really had the Plant PestLearn how to identify and treat the plant pest called Whitefly at https://www.houseplant411.com/glossary/whitefly-plant-pests called scaleSoft Brown Scale is the most common scale that attacks indoor houseplants especially ficus, ivy, spider plants, ferns, aralia, and schefflera. It appears as small bumpy brown spots that appear to move. As the scale sucks on the sap of the plant it secretes a sticky substance called honeydew. The honeydew attracts black mildew. Because of the shell-like exterior, sprays are only partially effective against scale. Wipe off the lines of brown oval bumps with your finger, a cloth, or a child’s toothbrush then spray the plant with Neem Oil. Use the Green Solution to clean off the black mildew., it would be all over the plant not just on the under-side of the leaves.

What are the spots on the leaves of my Bird's Nest fern that you can sort of see through?

Translucent spots on a Bird's Nest fern are caused by a bacterial plant infection. To treat this plant disease remove any diseased leaves, keep the remaining leaves dry, reduce your water, and keep your Bird's Nest fern away from your other plants until the infection clears up (or the plant dies).

Why don't the new leaves on my Bird’s Nest fern look like the original leaves on the plant. The new leaves have lobes but the old leaves looked like a long wavy tongue.

The leaves of a Bird's Nest fern may lose their lovely wavy shape if the plant is getting too much fertilizerPlants need fertilizer only when they are actively growing. Slow growing plants in low light require very little plant food. Too much fertilizer is worse than not enough. Most plants prefer a water soluble plant food at 1/2 the recommended strength. Plants that are in bloom or dormant should not be fertilized. Houseplant food contains nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). A fertilizer containing these elements in equal proportion is considered a balanced plant food. Nitrogen helps in photosynthesis and encourages the growth of leaves and stems. Potassium and phosphorus also help in photosynthesis and aid in root and flower development. Most fertilizers have trace elements of other minerals that are lacking in the soil but are necessary for good plant growth. Fertilizers have a high salt content. If a plant is not producing new leaves and doesn’t absorb the fertilizer, salts build up in the soil. These salts can burn the roots, discolor the leaves, and cause new growth to be small. . Plant food should always be diluted to 1/2 the recommended strength for most houseplants but especially for ferns.