Nephrolepis exaltata 'Bostoniensis Compacta'

Boston fern

Family

Nephrolepidaceae

Origin

South Africa

Environment

Moderate light; no direct sunlight. It's main enemy is water sitting on the leaves which will quickly melt it. Keep soil evenly moist, but not soggy. Never allow the soil to dry out. Nest fern requires minimum 50% relative humidity. Brown, shrivelled leaves are the result of dry air. Put this humidity-loving plant in a terrarium or mist the foliage every day with room-temperature water to give it the moist air it craves. They are best suited for Terrarium.

Combine half potting mix with half peat moss. Don't use potting mix that contains fertilizer (it can dissolve too fast and burn delicate fern roots).

Description

Compacta is shorter, more compact and more upright than Bostoniensis with 15-18 fronds. Nephrolepis exaltata, commonly called sword fern or Boston fern is an evergreen fern that grows with an upright spreading habit to 3 tall and as wide. In its native habitat, it may grow to as much as 7 tall. It is an easy and popular fern to grow indoors. Generally sword-shaped fronds have shallow toothed to entire pinnae. Fronds initially grow upward but arch gracefully with age.

Landscape Use

Pedestals or Hanging basketsTerrarium, Container, Groundcover, Hanging Basket, Houseplant