FountainFlow.Com

The Secrets Of Growing Beautiful Ferns

Air-layering and Hormone Treatments

To increase a plants woody stem, air-layering is necessary. The main house plants that are propagated in this manner are azalea, cissus, codiaeum, fatsia, philodendron and rhoicissus.

The action is performed by slitting through the stem on one side to form a sort of groove or tongue, where you want to incite roots to be produced. The tongue is dusted with a hormone powder and dampened moss is packed into the slit and the layer is then covered with moss. In order to prevent tissue damage or drying, the moss is covered with a polythene sheet and this is best done during the summertime when active growth is occurring.

Once roots have been sufficiently formed, the shoot is then cut off and set in a suitably sized pot.

How to do ring propagation

The method is called this because it involves removing a ring from the stems of plants, where new root growth is desired.

When the lower leaves of plants get to be too tall and leggy, ringing is performed.

The ideal time for ringing is early in the spring when active growth begins. About an inch wide section or ring of bark is removed, just below the lower leaves. The ring stem is bound with moss and covered with plastic film, which keeps it most until the newer roots form. Then the rooted upper portion can be cut and set up in a separate pot.

How to Grow Ferns from Spores

Many fern plants that are used as house plants can be increased by using spores. Boston fern plant spores form in clusters and usually on the backsides of matured fern fronds. The clusters are brown colored and if they are ready for sowing, the fronds should be gathered together and put into a paper bag and hung in a warm room for a couple days. By this time, the spores will have dropped to the bottom of the bag and formed a brownish colored powder.

Place a flower pot filled with a soil and covered with a layer of sifted peat moss. The spores might then be sprinkled in a thin layer on the surface and cover the pot with a pane of glass and put in a saucer of water. The pot need to be placed in a warm room and in about four to six weeks, the top of the compost will be covered with a fine layer of moss like growth. The growth contains small structures bearing male and female organs, after they have been fertilized, new ferns begin to appear. The young ferns can be taken out, much in the same way other seedlings are, into a light and fertile soil. After they have been picked out and put in a pan or pot, they have to be put into a pan or saucer of water and covered with a pane of glass once again. Eventually the plants will be large enough to put into separate pots. The final step is to put these plant into a glass-covered box, here they remain until they have achieved their maximum growth potential. Then the glass can be removed and the plants can be acclimated to the environment of the room.

February 23 2009 | Gardening | No Comments »

How To Choose An Asparagus Fern

If you are wanting to grow more than just a few plants at the same time, chances are good most of them will fall under the heading of foliage plants. While not as showy as the flowering plants mentioned in the last chapter, they more than make up for what they lack by being easy to grow, easy propagation and easily adapting beautifully to any type of environment. Foliage plants are considered to be the backbone of every indoor garden, but there are a few exceptions that know no season and continue to thrive and grow all year long.

There are many different types of foliage plants in cultivation, thousands of varieties, including hybrids. Choices offered for the indoor gardener as to the size, shape and leaf color and basically endless. The plants that are described here are easily grown in any part of the country with ease and are readily available almost anywhere.

The asparagus fern, like many other types of plants, has a name that does not exactly fit it. Though it appears like a fern, it has foliage that many florists used to add with most cut flowers, it is a member of the lily family and a close relative of the vegetable known as asparagus. The botanical name is A. plumosis, the plant needs a rich soil in which to grow and has to be well fed and will grow best in little or dim light. It can often be attacked by red mites, so it needs to be regularly sprayed down with water and during active growth periods it will need to be kept watered well.

The fern does well under favorable home conditions – room temperature, does not favor extreme heat or cold, so do not set it directly over a radiator or in a place where it will experience drafts of cold air. Though it is a foliage plant that is highly suitable for use in interior landscaping, the fern does get minute while flowers and purple berries. The best way to propagate is to seed, but it can also be done by cuttings as well.

The Aspidistra is a plant that almost begs to be abused. It has a sturdiness and is indifferent to whatever soil, heat, humidity and climate it is exposed to, hence its nickname the cast iron plant. The leaves are very large and can measure up to 20 inches, the shape is oblong and there is a point at the end. Though in theory it is a flowering plant, it hardly ever blooms inside so it is considered by many to be only a foliage plant. There are a few varieties and some have striped green and white leaves, but it is uncommon. The plant needs to be watered well and sprayed often to keep it clean and free of red mites. It is best propagated by division.

January 31 2009 | Landscaping | No Comments »