Rabbits Foot Ferns

new here could anyone tell me how to take care of my rabbits foot fern . i dont want to loose another one. i have lost so many dont know why i cant leave them alone but i love them so much. the latest one ihave has the frond starting to dry up. i am watering and misting them according to directions buttttttttt. please help
thank so much

I have one that has grown around the wire basket that it is in. I ease it down in my fish pond and hold it until there is no more bubbles comming out of it then hang it up to drain. It seems to like the fish water and stays dark green. I don`t do this as often as I water the ones in soil.I think too much water rots it from the inside. Hope this helps.

do you think i should put in wire basket then with the spaghgm moss like i read somewhere else in daves garden about staghorn ferns?

I have a small rabbit's foot fern that is now about 1-1/2 years old. It's in a plastic hanging pot, and hangs in front of a SW facing window close to the glass. Since the glass is single-pane, it does get cool at night.

I water it a couple of times a week, and about every 2 weeks it gets a good dousing under the shower in the bathroom. I know I shouild mist it (as well as my boston fern) but I never seem to remember to do it. We keep a pot of water on the wood stove, which we burn about 8-10 hours a day, and that helps keep the house humidity between 35-40%, which is not bad for a forced air heated house in winter.

depends what species it is
Humata tyermanii requires less watering than most Davallia in the trade...
It is also slower growing.
Davallia fejeensis and Davallia trichomanoides tend to require more even watering and less drying out periods.

All are easy in a shaded moist area. I am also not a fan of misting, better to have proper humidity when possible.
btw: Humata's can handle temps into the 20's whereas most Davallia tend to die at the onset of a frost.

Drew

Drew, it would be helpful for people like me if you'd post photos of the different species when you speak of them. What you said above means nothing to me because I have no clue about the species.

Not that I don't want to learn, LOL.

hmmm, ok, welp I don't have pics handy.
Humata tyermanii has white rhizomes
Davallias all have brownish rhizomes and finer cut foliage.

how about potting what do you receomend.i believe i have the fejeenis kind.
i also have a battle going on to save my other footed guys. kangroo foot, et fern, bears foot , monkey foot .

generally unmilled spaghnum is used. ya know, the kind used for lining wire baskets?

if thats hard to obtain, try using alot of perlite in the soil mix.

Humata tyermanii: http://www.blackjungle.com/blackjungle/prods/F-HT.html
Davallia fejeensis: http://plantsdatabase.com/go/54822/Rabbit%27s+Foot+Fern%2C+Lacy+Paw%2C+Lacy+Hare%27s+Foot_Davallia_fejeensis.html
Davallia trichomanoides: http://plantsdatabase.com/go/53037/Squirrel%27s+Foot+Fern%2C+Hare%27s+Foot+Fern%2C+Black+Rabbit%27s+Foot+Fern_Davallia_trichomanoides.html, http://www.srtrop.com/ferns/davalia.html

In regards to those photos in the plants database regarding Davallia trichomanoides:
The picture by Jkom51 is right on the money, that is a fine example of it, however the picture by george4tax is NOT trichomanoides, it is Humata tyermanii, and a fine photo of one.

Notice the different cut in the foliage? the Humata being courser and the Davallia being finer cut? Also note the color of the rhizomes on the George4tax photo? clearly white, whereas Davallia trichomanoides has brown rhizomes, with only the first centimeter being white.
Another good way to tell the difference, the Humata in George's picture has brownish new fronds, this is clearly a sign of the genus, whereas the Davallias typically have light green new growth maturing to darker green.

hope this helped out.
Drew

My Davallia, Dave, just returned from his New England flower show triumph. He got a second place. I water him in the laundry sink. He is a large, old plant,I estimate about 15 years old. I ahave had him for about 8 years. I put him in water in the sink and water him with the spray nozzle of my hose. I let him sit in the water for about an hour and then drain the sink and let him drip out. He goes back to his stand in my sunroom. I do this about once a month. Watering him from the top is chancy business indoors without the sink. He has been well leafed out this year, hence his second place ribbon. he grew out a bald spot from last year's show where he only got a third place. I root little dave, Jrs. and they are a popular item at our garden club plant sale.

A beautiful plant - no wonder you won! I find my very young Rabbit's Foot likes a bright window... but no direct sunlight. I bought it as a "rehab" last Summer. I placed it in a bright window last Autumn, & now I have leaves coming out all over. Filling in nicely... but nothing like the pictured one above!

Here's a giant Davallia from the New York Botanic Garden. I snapped this picture in December. My daughter is 5'2" and my son is 6'1" just for reference. My Dave has a ways to go.

That's awesome. Yours makes mine look puny, never mind THAT specimen!

My Dave just responds to regular, not frequent, watering and good light, not sun. He also gets a few beads of Osmacote every now and then, too. If they are in a window, you have to get out there and turn the pots so they grow evenly. The cuttings of the feet root slowly but quite easily. Just keep the potting medium moist around it. And I just keep Dave large, I didn't grow him that size, he was given to me as a mature plant.

This message was edited Apr 9, 2004 2:48 PM

Good grief that thing is huge!

I looooove that you call your plant Dave. lol I've never named a plant. I just call them by their plant names. I have a 15 year old pencil cactus that deserves a name. I should ponder that...

Dave's name was suggested by his genus. The cuttings are all Dave, Jrs. Makes it easier to point him out when I need help watering him.

Gardenmart,
I do not beleive Dave is a Davallia....

and angie, have you considered callin it 'Penny'
would be cute if nothing else.

The only plant I have that's named is "Benjamin", my Ficus benjamina who is about 15 years old and currently enjoying a prolonged visit with Vic.

Hmm drew, probably would wierd my mom 'Penny' out a little if I named a plant after her...lol Nice try though! :)

Deep,
what do you think it is? I looked at Humata but Dave's feet are not silver rather a greyish brown. He resembles the pictures of D. fejeensis in the database. Please, don't leave me hanging! It also looks just like the one from the NY Botanic Garden, except smaller, which was labeled D. fejeensis.

This message was edited Apr 13, 2004 4:55 PM

well since i first posted i have managed to kill the rabbits foot fern plus a couple more. i love them so much but just cant seem to do i t right. .how ever i am learning with my stag horn ferns. i have managed to keep a few of them alive for more then a couple months.. i wil try again sometime but am going to have to find a free plant if i buy another one my husband will kill me. LOL.

There is also one called "Deer Foot" with larger rhizomes and I belieive "Squirrel Foot", this one may be the same as the "Rabbit's Foot". This is the trouble with common names.