Bird Nest Fern Care – How to Grow Asplenium Nidus Indoors
Botanical Name: Asplenium nidus
Bird Nest Fern is one of the easiest types of ferns to grow indoors. This tropical native is fast-growing and will live for many years with good care.
Discover how much light, water and humidity it wants, plus when to repot this beautiful houseplant.
Get to Know Bird Nest Fern
In its natural habitat, this fern grows as an epiphyte (a plant that grows on trees) in the warm, moist, tropical rain forests.
Despite its tropical beginnings, Bird Nest Fern adapts well to being a house plant. Place your potted fern where it is out of direct sun and away from drafts, which can scorch the fronds. Provide humidity and you’ll keep it healthy.
This unique fern grows in the form of a deep rosette of large, shiny, spear-shaped fronds. New fronds unfurl from the center of the plant. Its fronds are fragile, so I’d put this fern where passersby won’t brush up against it.
Those fronds can reach 4 ft (1.2 m) long in its native habitat.Bird’s Nest Fern Problems, Solutions and Answers
As Bird Nest Fern ages, the oldest, outer fronds will turn brown. This is normal. You can cut them off at the base to keep the plant looking neat.
Those upright fronds tend to be dust-catchers. Keep the broad, shiny fronds dust-free by spraying with water and gently wiping them with a damp cloth. Never use leafshine products on ferns because it can severely damage their delicate fronds.
Repot young plants in spring, every couple years or when the roots fill the pot. If you find that the roots are attached to the pot, run a knife around the inside to loosen them before you can remove the rootball. You may need to break the pot to remove it. It’s a good idea to use a container with drainage holes to avoid soggy soil. Take care not to pack down the potting mix; Bird’s Nest Fern likes a loose mixture.
This fern’s problems are few. Watch for scale insects, that look like small, brown discs on fronds. If you find an invasion of these pests, spray with soapy water followed by clean water. Don’t use insecticides on ferns because they are easily damaged by chemicals.
Bird’s Nest Fern gets its name from the unfurled fronds in the center of the plant that look like eggs in a nest. In its native habitat, those fronds quickly reach 4 ft (1.2m) long.
Bird Nest Fern Care Tips
Origin: Southeast Asia and Tropical Australia
Height: 2 ft (60 cm) in a container indoors
Light: Give your plant bright, indirect sunlight. No direct sun, which can scorch the fronds. Give the pot a quarter turn each week for even growth.
Water: Keep soil evenly moist. Use a pot with drainage holes to prevent overwatering. Water the potting mix, not the center of the rosette, otherwise it can easily rot. Water less in winter when growth is slower. Yellow fronds are often a sign of overwatering.
Humidity: This tropical fern likes moist air. If the relative humidity drops below 50%, use a humidity tray or cool-mist room humidifier to add moisture to the air around the fern. Brown leaf tips are a sign of dry air.
Temperature: Slightly cool to average room temps (60-75°F/16-24°C) suit this tropical fern just fine.
Soil: Peat moss based, such as African violet potting mix.
Fertilizer: Feed every 2 weeks in spring and summer with a balanced (such as 10-10-10 NPK) water-soluble fertilizer at half strength.
Propagation: Bird’s Nest Fern is propagated by spores, which is difficult to do for the home grower.
