Staghorn ferns ( Platycerium bifurcatum)are an centre - catching plus to any landscape painting because of their hit beauty and the way they are grown .
As long as you give them plenty of humidness and irrigate them oftentimes , they ’re not hard to exert .
However , overwatering is one of the few ways to kill these tropic epiphytic plant .
Overwatering make staghorn fern basal fronds to mold dark-brown or blacken with fatal muscae volitantes . It will finally make source rotting , which can be fateful to your fern . Prune affected fronds and roots , apply fungicide , and repot or remount in fresh culture medium . Adjust the watering schedule as needed .
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Signs of an Overwatered Staghorn Fern
Staghorn ferns are indeed one - of - a - kind plants . They are unparalleled because they use both roots and shield fronds at the theme to immerse pee and nutrients .
luckily , this make spotting signs of overwatering above the soil line on these epiphytes easy .
Overwatering cause wide terms to the rootball , connect the industrial plant to supports such as walls , rocks , or trellis .
However , keep an eye out for the following symptoms of an overwatered staghorn fern :
– Staghorn Fern Turning Yellow
Like many tropical plants , Staghorn fern use chlorophyl in their leaves to win over sunlight into usable energy .
Unfortunately , leaf edema and damage are because of too much moisture , which breaks down chlorophyll .
unreasonable soil moisture also rot the source , prevent the industrial plant from absorbing essential nutrient .
As a resultant , leafage yellowing is one of the first signs of overwatering . In plus , a yellowish - chocolate-brown discolouration can come along on the undersurface of the fronds .
– Browning or Blackening of Basal Fronds
When you overwater your staghorn fern , the al-Qaida of the fronds is one of the first places to suffer .
The above image showing root plates . fundamentally stag horn ferns have 3 type of fronds .
fat ( the ones that hang down ) , sterile ( the unity that stick up ) and the browns ones are fronds that develop to move as an anchor to fix them to the surface of something .
If the antler frond get to sear or brown near the bottom , you have most probably overwatered your fern .
Likewise , if your staghorn fern is thirsty , the tips of the basal frond will wilt and brown .
– Black Spots on the Basal Fronds
Overly moist environments are idealistic breeding priming for a across-the-board mountain chain of fungus kingdom .
This is peculiarly true if your overwatered plant is situate in a warm area that encourages the growth of opportunistic fungi .
Rhizoctonia is the most common fungal disease affecting your overwatered staghorn fern .
It ’s a irritating fungus that lives in the filth and causes problems like damping - off , leafage blight , stem rot , and ascendant rot .
It is typical for the Rhizoctonia fungus to assail the al-Qaeda of frond that contact sozzled soil or ground .
Due to this disease , the basal frond are covered in dark-brown or black spots .
If you do n’t regale these fungal diseases , they will eventually pop your fern because they assail the spring up gunpoint .
When the first signs show up , you should intercept watering and turn down the humidity . There are effectual fungicide you’re able to habituate to battle the problem .
– Staghorn Fern Wilting
Water is necessary for your plant life ’s splendid shape and appearance . The frond of staghorn fern tend to be steadfastly spread out when they are perch on walls .
However , protract overwatering will cause your plant to come out wilted and the fronds to wilt .
Oxygen is lose from soil line pouch when there is too much wet .
As a resultant , your plant ’s roots can no longer rest and die due to the lack of oxygen .
This sloughy environment also encourages fungal growth , which leads to root guff .
Therefore , the foliation and sleep of the industrial plant are n’t perplex enough absorption and water stream .
Lack of nutrient and urine causes turgor pressure to lessen , making the fronds look deflated rather than fast or risque .
At this point , your staghorn fern may take care more like an eyesore than a masterpiece that draw and quarter hoi polloi ’s attention to your dwelling interior decoration .
– Small Dark Spots on Fronds
Overwatering causes small dark spots on the undersurface of frond . These small morose spots or lesions will ruin your plant life ’s rude verdure .
A want of wet around your plant or in the rhizome can leave in a different distribution of nutrient . Because of nutrient imbalance , these temporary hookup and spots appear .
– Staghorn Fern Soft Leaves
Leaf tissue suffers greatly from overwatering , especially in the former stages when too much weewee reaches the plant .
Leaf edema will have extensive tissue and cadre legal injury , leave in a loss of overall turgor and firmness .
The leaves will experience deficient food and water when the roots are damaged . The result will be mushy and soft rather than chirpy and immobile .
– Rotting Core
A severe example of overwatering will almost always result in root disease . This is because the decomposition will move both the roots / rhizomes and the frond .
A rotting inwardness is often associated with dropping or break antler frond . Over prison term , they tend to develop an unpleasant odor .
Aside from overwatering , the follow are some of the most common causal agent of a rotten staghorn fern base :
If the core group of your Staghorn Fern rot , it is likely to die . This is because the plant ’s independent structure is located between the root globe and the buckler front . As a result , a rotting core kills your flora from within .
– Root Rot
If the inwardness of your Staghorn Fern rots , it is likely to die . The plant ’s master structure is between the root ball and the shield fronts . As a result , a rotting core kill your plant from within .
signaling of root putrefaction are not pretty , and they include :
Root rotting is the concluding consequence of overwatering your plant . You must move rapidly in this spot due to the limited amount of fourth dimension useable .
Before repot or remount your plant , take any diseased , demise , or stagnant rootage and fronds from the mass .
How to Save an Overwatered Staghorn Fern
After measure all of the symptom of your staghorn fern , you ’ve concluded that overwatering is to charge .
Next , deposit the trouble and create an ideal surroundings for your works to recover .
I hope you catch the job before the roots and fronds were seriously damage .
If your plant has ascendent rot , you ’ll require to go to sinful lengths to salvage it from death .
(1) Change to a Fast-Draining Soil after Drying Out the Plant
focalise on the soil metier is the firm and most effectual way to bring back to life a staghorn fern that has been slenderly overwatered .
However , a soused stain medium can lead to solution rot in this epiphytic plant life ’s roots , as they have few and smaller root systems .
In increase , if you let the intermediate drip for a long time before remounting , the soil or moss will get too wet and anguish the plant ’s roots .
alternatively of digging up and replace the grease , it ’s best to start fresh with a young pot and filth that drains well .
But , first , you ’ll require to let your plant dry out , so it does n’t get more damage or decompose .
I commonly perform these actions to save my staghorn fern when it gets too much water ( aka , it has not been infected by widespread hogwash disease ) .
After a few days or weeks , your staghorn fern should begin to recover . Fronds will recover their vibrant unripened , firm structure .
(2) Prune Dead and Diseased Roots & Fronds
Overwatering make ideal conditions for the growth of rot diseases . If your flora continues to be overwatered , it will lose more of its frond and roots .
Use a sterile pair of scissors or pruning hook to bump off rotted or dead frond or roots .
After you houseclean up , check that that the only roots and fronds lead are healthy , firm , and springy .
If you do n’t cut off the decayed parting , they will bind the rot disease and spread it to other plant life part .
(3) Treat the Roots with a Fungicide
To prevent the feast of rot disease and minimize succeeding reinfections , all roots must be treat with an appropriate fungicide .
Adding hydrogen peroxide to the raw potting mix or spray the root with it are effective methods .
I favor to expend a fungicide drench for Phytophthora and Pythium root rot .
If the beginning rot is not too unfit , you’re able to also use cinnamon , activated charcoal , and Anthemis nobilis as natural antimycotic agent .
If the overwatering has already caused fungous leaf spot diseases like Rhizoctonia , I recommend using a antifungal agent that contains Copper .
For the intervention of fungous diseases . Here are the antimycotic agent I commend :
(4) Select the Right Pot
The existing container may contain pathogens . Choose a new pot with drainage holes . Mature staghorn ferns are my favorite to climb up .
If you plant your staghorn fern in a wire basket , make trusted it ’s two column inch bigger than the be muckle .
(5) Repot the Staghorn Fern
(6) Adjust the Watering Schedule
Staghorn ferns require unconstipated irrigation , but the base should dry out between watering .
As a result , you should hold off until your works has begun to droop before re - watering , typically once every week during the raise time of year .
Before re - watering , grant the top third of the pot to dry out out completely .
How Often Do You Need to Water A Staghorn Fern?
During the hot , dry springtime and summertime months , you may demand to irrigate a staghorn fern once a calendar week .
However , you should only use it once every two or three weeks during the colder calendar month of wintertime and fall .
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