Staghorn fern

I just got 2 very small staghorn ferns. I mounted them on a slab of wood (actual tree slab). But now I don't really know how to care for it....as far as lighting and water. I live in zone 5a, so this is a houseplant here. Can anyone give me growing instructions/tips from *personal experience*? Thanks! Jenny

Also posted in the Tropical Forum

Not sure about how to treat it as a house plant, but as a garden plant the common species (P bifurcatum) is pretty easy... needs water when hot and dry, though drying out totally doesn't seem to hurt it much as long as it doesn't stay dry for very long, and a long, thorough wetting process ensues (some just take the whole plant, board and all, and drop them face down in a tank of water for a few hours, and then rehang them). Likes being fertilized with miracle grow... some, who mount larger ones, recommend a banana peel to rot above the plant. THey take some sun but need to be acclimated. They take some cold, but not much below freezing. THey seem to do well in dark gardens, so maybe would do OK in doors... but the low humidity could end up being a chronic problem, so recommend mist regularly.

Thank you for your growing tips. Right now I have it in my sunroom with my other houseplants. I do have a humidifier that runs constantly, so that may help with the humidity requirements. Thanks for the info on soaking the plant. That is one major question I had. Jenny

I have never had one-- but thought of this-- my asparagus ferm LOVES my bathroom - I have a DH who takes long showers every day. Maybe your fern would be happy in your bathroom?

Heather

I grow a couple indoors, but not mounted....I have terrible luck with them mounted, they always go too dry too soon!

I have one in a hanging basket potted with some soil/some orchid mix and one in a pot of 'peaty' soil. They both get quite dry before watering again, as I think over-watering a *potted* staghorn is the most common cause of death indoors.
(Then there's me and my *underwatering* of the mounted ones!)

The only thing I can add to what Palmbob says is when grown *indoors* they do need a lot of light. I set mine just a couple of feet from my south-facing window.

Good luck with yours!

Wow Nan. Your tips have really helped me. I don't think mine is getting enough light right now.......and I think it drys out too quickly. I was just thinking to myself last night.....now why can't I just grow this is orchid mix? You've got me thinking now. Thanks. Jenny

So this explains why mine is acting strangely, even though I treat it the same as all my other ferns....I'm doing it wrong! Thanks for the advice here, I'll give it a brand new treatment tonight. I don't think I could successfully mount it though, so I'll just change its soil to regular poting soil (I have sphagnum moss in with the soil right now, which really holds the water...), let it dry between waterings, and move it to a location with more light. If that kills it, I'll just go and buy a new one - its pretty small still. Thanks again!

Good luck, it should do nicely inside.

I have one that over 20 years old, about 200 lbs. and 5'x5x5. As you can imagine, it is PERMANTLY hung in my lania. I do not water it alot. I have a tube running from my gutter, so when it rains, it gets watered just like the other plants. It received no direct sun, but lots of light. He is quite a picture. You would have a picture if I would get off my @#% and get one. Soon, really soon folks.

Nancy Lee

Here is my link with some cultural notes.
http://www.kammlott.net/Staghorn.html

I should add, the cutting on the bottom of that page approached the original size within only 2 years in our Living room, so I had found a good home for that one too. I had never let the plant dry out completely, otherwise watering during the winter in that location would have become too difficult. Water simply runs through a dry plant onto the nice wooden floor, while one can pour very slowly a whole can of water into the plant when it is still a bit damp.....
I always liked that plant, but it did get too large for our house.

Totally amazing RUK, what a huge plant! I hope my little fella looks that good. Thanks for showing us the pictures and sharing your experiences. It really helps.
Christine.

additional -
The plants were only hooked up with wrapped - around - chains which are quite sturdy.
The large plant had no soil or potting medium of any kind. The cuttings had a bit of Sphagnum moss between pieces in the beginning when I had tied them together. Within one or two seasons the chains or moss are totally covered by the new growth of this plant.

Wow, Ruk....now *that's* a Specimen Plant!!!!

So yours had no pot, no basket, no bark or soil mix of any kind?

yes, that is correct. I added fertilizer once in a while when in active growth. It seemed to work just fine.

I water my staghorn by soaking, like Palmbob described. I sometimes put it in the pond since that water should be more nutritious than regular ol' tap water. In general, I water mine once a week and it goes bone dry between waterings. We have very low humidity during the day sometimes, but at night it nearly always gets near the 100% point. It is hung in a tree, which raises the humidity when the tree is leafed out. Mine seems to be "potted" like RUK's - spagnum moss and nothing else. It grows very slowly.

Ruk that was a lovely plant. I am going to have to look for one now. Barb

They love Banana Peels thrown behind the shield...it is the only fert I give mine...and they love it!

RUK, How did you get the plants off of the large one. I have a large one that grew around a wire basket and I an afarid to try to pull any of the babies off. They seem to be firmly attached.

I took a saw!! And even that was not easy, but I did get a few good size pieces off the mother plant.

OH!, I don`t think I could take a saw to it. I would be so afraid I would do major damage and the whole plant would die. Thanks anyway.

Oh, I was sitting here lusting after one of the babies busybee, but please don't take a saw to it. If it were mine I would be afraid I would kill it also and yours is just too pretty to take the chance.

Judy

There should be a better way to get pups off. It seems like when the new pad starts with a new plant they are stuck to the existing pads. I would like to know if cutting one of these off with some of the older pad will hurt any of the main plant. I plan on trying something but I am just a little unsure about how to go about it.

I bought mine a couple of months ago with the intent of hanging it outside on my porch. However, I didn't have a sturdy hanger for it, and ended up ousting a strugling spider plant out of its spot in the kitchen, and it hasn't moved since! I pull it down once a week or so to water it, and mostly leave it alone. The plant hangs in a corner right between two windows, and only gets a little bit of sun during the day. Otherwise, it is just very bright light.

I water it by soaking it in a pot of water in the sink, then letting it drip-dry before putting it back. My faveorite thing about the way this Staghorn was planted, is that there are lots of pups growing out of the sides of the moss! In a year or so, you won't be able to see the moss at all.

I've been wanting one for so long.Would anyone sell me a pup or trade me something for one?Thanks,Jody

Indeed RUK, is a true greenthumber.

The house Pam and I used to live on at the coast here in Southern Ca. was a perfect environment for Platyceriums (Staghorns). I mounted several species in a giant Sycamore, and they thrived with drip tubes run up the tree to them. Fertilizer was frozen anchovies rammed in behind a few layers of shield fronds along with rotten dates from our date palms. The people who bought the house thought they were mistletoe and cut the tree down in fear of a parasite that was actually several species of giant specimens.....sheesh!

The reason they love bananas is the fruit's high K levels.

RUK is right about a saw...lol. And it's not easy, the shields get several layers thicks and are very fibrous. But a serrated steak knife is a perfect tool also for cutting out the 'pups'. Just leave about three inches of shield, about six to ten layers deep around each pup and remount, repot, or stick it in the crotch of a tree (if you in the right zone) with some sphagnum...they're not a huge challenge. Watering is exactly as Palmbob says. It is not uncommon in the south ca,fl,la,tx to see specimens weighing tons. Platycerium superbum is a particularly spectacular species with giant shield fronds.

I have no idea why a fern has 'fronds' but all Platyceriums have two types; shield fronds (obvious) and fertile fronds (the ones that look like antlers). They are called 'fertile' because this is where the plant holds spore....the rusty colored stuff on the underside of the fertile frond (leaf).

Hope this dispells some fears about stabbing and cutting. They heal quickly and cutting a few pups out now and then allows the parent to often produce a huge, beautiful shield frond after injury as a protection.

best of luck,
don

Don,
that must have been an awesome specimen!! Anchovies and rotten dates as fertilizer?
I love it!!! Makes sense - outside!
Too bad the new owners didn't ask what that plant was. What a rotten shame to kill it.

After the summer outside hanging in a tree, I usually found partially enclosed nuts and other squirrel food in my plant!

Thanks for pointing out the deal with the banana peels. I have read that people throw those on top of their epiphyllums too.

Ursula