Bone family. According to various sources, the genus has from several dozen to several hundred species. They are all predominantly herbaceous plants, leading a terrestrial, rock or epiphytic lifestyle. The leaves can be whole or pinnate, the rhizome is either short vertical (in epiphytes) or creeping (in terrestrial ones). Many species are still in question, the names are not approved and are disputed by biologists for their relationship to other fern genera.
The most common species is Asplenium nidus. This epiphytic fern, with its rosetted leaves, resembles bromeliads. It has large, broad, light green leaves. Asplenium is a fast-growing plant. With good care, its leaves reach 60-100 cm. With age, the plant grows strongly in width, because new leaves are constantly formed from the center of the rosette. He does not like when they touch the leaves.
Also, the species Asplenium bulbiferum is grown in culture. This species looks completely different. It has pinnate, heavily dissected leaves on which numerous babies develop, and its stems are wire-like.
Asplenium - care
Temperature: Aspleniums are heat-loving ferns, it is desirable that the temperature during the growth period be about 20-25 ° C, in winter it is slightly cooler, but not lower than 18 ° C. Asplenium does not tolerate drafts!
Lighting: The place for asplenium should be bright enough, but with shading from direct sunlight, the north, east and northeast windows will work well. Do not place the plant in the back of the room - in nature asplenium grows under the shade of the openwork crown of trees, but not in a gloomy shadow.
Watering: Watering is plentiful from spring to autumn and moderate in winter. Instead of regular watering, it is recommended to immerse the pots with the plant in a basin of water from time to time. Asplenium does not tolerate hard and chlorinated water; for irrigation, water at room temperature is used, which has stood for at least 12 hours (preferably boiled or filtered).
Fertilizer: Fertilization is carried out 1 once a month from April to September with a slightly concentrated fertilizer solution (approximately half a dose for plants such as philodendrons or ficuses).
Humidity: Aspleniums need moist air, about 60%. In dry air, the plant dries leaves. It is best to place on a wide tray covered with expanded clay or gravel. They also water the ground in a pot and pour water into a pallet. If there is a central heating battery nearby, then it should always be hung with a damp sheet.
Transplant: The soil should have a slightly acidic reaction. The soil is loose: the 1 part of the leaf, 2 pine bark, the 0.5 part of the humus soil and the 1 part of the coconut substrate, there is always a high drainage to the bottom of the pot. Transplanted annually or after a year. Does not tolerate planting in too large a container and in heavy clay soil. You can use a purchased soil mixture for orchids. It is very important that the soil of asplenium dries quickly, is loose and airy. Roots must breathe! Therefore, epiphytic aspleniums can make small holes in the walls of the pot.
Asplenium reproduction
Asplenium is propagated, like all other ferns at home, by dividing the bush. Remove the plant from the pot, lightly fold the earthen lump with your hands, then separate the leaf with a small lump of roots on the side of the root lump, cut off with a sharp knife. Plant the branch in a small pot in loose ground. Any universal soil from the store is suitable, for example, Terra Vita. After planting, the children of ferns grow slowly, they do not need to be fed, you can only spray with epin or a weak zircon solution. But in a month, more active growth begins.