A brand spanking new feature for us on the blog today, give it up for our Botanical SOS series.
We're always getting asked about care instructions for our houseplants, and, as plant and flower-a-holics, we thought we should bring you the low-down and need to know for some of our favourites
This week were featuring my plant bestie ... the humble fern. There are literally thousands of different species of ferns and I love so many of them, but I think my favourite has to be the ultra delicate (and prone to tantrums) Maidenshair fern.
Today we're going to tackle how we meet her demands.
This delicate fern packs a big punch on the care front. Don't let this beauty queen fool you, she wants a lot of things to stay happy. We're talking luxury dressing room and diamond encrusted plant pot, but meet her needs and she will reward you with the most gorgeous fern foliage you could ever wish for.
1. She loves light ... but not direct light. So a bright room near to a window that doesn't get direct sunlight would be perfect.
2. Keep well watered, not a crumb of dry soil otherwise she will shrill, shrink and shrivel in the most distressing way. I water mine with tap water that has been left out for 24 hours, don't ask me why but it seems to work.
3. Drafts are a massive no-no. No drafts under any circumstance. So keep those windows and doors closed folks.
4. Now opinion is split here, I don't use a liquid fertiliser very often, maybe once a year on my house plants, but that's probably more to do with me forgetting than an informed choice. If your sensible any plant will benefit from some form of liquid feed every few months. Our maiden likes a weak blend (we're talking a brief dip with the tea bag weak) every few months.
5. Trims. Like every lady, she doesn't want split ends gracing her head. Trim any brown leaves to keep her looking her best, but be careful not to touch too many of her 'stroke me now' leaves. She likes to be admired from a distance.
6. To move ... or in the case of our maiden ... NOT! Once your lady is installed and happy I would avoid moving her at all costs, she will not thank you for it.
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