r/Staghornfern

I have a large staghorn fern in Thailand, and during rainy season the snails have moved in.

They ignore the old fronds and instead eat the new, soft-growing fronds.

I've tried snail bait nearby (the little hut picture 2), but they don't seem interested. I also hand-pick them at night - usually 2-3 every night - but after a week, they're still there!

I've also been reading about natural repellents like garlic, but I'm finding conflicting information about whether garlic spray can damage the young fronds, so I'm hesitant to try it.

I don't want to put bait directly inside the fern because I've read that it's not recommended.

Has anyone dealt with this before? What actually worked for you? I'm looking for something that protects the new growth without harming the staghorn

The moss pile is a little taller than I was going for. We're in a fairly dry climate so maybe having a larger area to contain moisture is better, we'll see....

As the plant matures, the tips of the leaves will curl. Very cute

Hi guys, i Got my new collection in yesterday and while the plants are getting used to the space i'm figuring out the whole setup i had in my mind.

I'm very much interested in your advice, feedback and all tips and tricks

I've Got the Bifurcatum about 2 months now since it's easy to get in Belgium. I expanded my collection with:

- Willinckii 'Jenny'

- Neptune

- Horn's surprise

- Wandea

The Idea is to mount them on some boards i Got and hang them on the Wall. The window next to it is facing South east. I tried it with the B. And so far i'm very happy with the result tho i'll have to redo it because the plank is not "waterproof" and i didn't make the spagnhum Ball tight enough. (also the old plank doesn't match the newer ones).

- Watering happens whenever the spagnhum feels dry and i'll soak it completely with the garden hose and give it some time Time to dry before hanging it up again.

-Haven't fed it nutrition yet.

-I added the soil it was in to the plank and covered it with a lot of spagnhum. There we're A LOT of roots so i didn't feel like cutting them

-Do i need to remove all the soil first and free the roots before making the Mossball or can i leave it in the current medium?

I've Got 5 plants for 4 boards so either i mix 2 smaller ones on one plank (not merging them to one spagnhum Ball) or i need to find some other backpiece.

This is the first year i'm doing platyceriums and while i'm loving the sht out of them i'm also very cautious and scared because they're not native to Belgium and i want them to thrive !

I'm doing tons of research but feel free to add some knowledge !

On the Wandea i found some little friends that might ressemble mealy bugs ? I cleaned it out by hand (about 10-15) with plant soap as much i could. It's currently in quarantine. Do i keep doing manual labor with Qtips and soap/alcohol? I just Got rid of thrips on my other plants with intense neem-oil sessions but i think this will be too intens for these newcomers.

Thanks for all the input !

Hi everyone!
I mounted my platycerium superbum 2 months ago and I’ve just realized that I might have mount it incorrectly. Should I rotate it 90 degrees to the right?

If so, how should I orient it? Thanks.

Came from Costa Rica 50 years ago. Any insight would be much appreciated.

Thank you!!

Hello! I'm hoping someone here knows about staghorn ferns and can help me. My aunt has had this staghorn fern for over 30 years. Since she and my uncle have gotten older they haven't been able to take care of the yard as much so there's been some overgrown plants. I recently realized that there is another plant growing in the fern, according to google it's an invasive umbrella tree. How can we remove it without damaging the fern, or is it safer to just leave it as it is?

Hi everyone,

Posted on plantclinic a while ago because I had no idea this sub existed. Wasn't able to get much advice over there and figured you guys are probably a wealth of information and could help set me on the right track with my fern.

I've had this for a few years now, and while it's never thrived under my care (I expect a combination of poor lighting conditions and infrequent fertilizer), it's never had fronds that have died from the base like this before. This is the second consecutive time it's done this, where it finally gives some new growth only to turn yellow, then brown, then black at the base. They usually fall off shortly after this. What's more worrisome to me is that it's now happening to one of the few large fronds it has, and I fear this is the beginning of the end for one of my favorite plants since I suspect that big frond is going to fall off too and the fern won't have enough surface area left to get the energy it needs to survive in these conditions. Or, it's got root rot, which is even worse.

Last two photos are from about a month ago, when I first asked for advice and she was a bit healthier... I'd love to figure out what's going on and save her, I'm quite fond of this plant.

Notes:

- I suspect I'm overwatering it. I usually leave it until the medium is a bit crunchy, and then soak it in the shower until it's heavy and dripping (usually one good spray for a few minutes, come back and spray it again for about 30 seconds for a good soak) and leave it hanging in the shower to drip the excess. The medium holds a lot of water, more than I remember it holding. It gets a shower about once per week (not on a schedule, just depends on if the medium goes crunchy or not). It used to be that I underwatered it and fronds would die that way, so this is probably overcompensation.

- I realize that the lighting situation is not ideal. It's a little ways from the window, and was growing lopsided (I have no where else it can hang to get "even" lighting), so tried to compensate by adding a grow light to the other side. One of my recent attempts to make it happier was to "filter" the light through a little frosted plastic bag to avoid a direct lighting situation, but if that's not good enough I am open to suggestions.

- It used to have more antler fronds (and wasn't so lopsided), but as far as I am aware, it never had an obvious shield frond. It was purchased that way.

- The temperature and humidity level are kept fairly consistent. It's usually slightly on the humid side and ranges between 21-24c in the house on average. The air vents in the ceiling nearby are kept sealed to prevent cold or hot air from blowing all over the plants. That being said, sometimes I do throw the window open to let fresh air in at night for up to 6 hours at a time, and that can get as cool as 14c or so.

Thank you in advance for any advice you're able to provide!

What are the brown spots on the fronds? From the research I’ve done they’re spores? Could I harvest them and make new little babies?

The shield has gone all brown aswell and I do not see any new sprouts! There’s multiples layers of shield all dead behind this one.
Can I trim it? Can I look for new growth?
I soak it once a week w my fish tank water during water changes and a little fertilizer.

This is my first staghorn and my hardest plant to care for so far!
Is the shield still alive n what not!

Planted this little piece of staghorn a while back and just looked in the pot today and saw this. What do I do now?? I have no idea how to properly prop these this is the first one I’ve ever done. Also is that another growth in the last picture? How do I deal w that? Any advice is appreciated! I’m still trying to learn about these types of plants so I’m still very much a beginner 🥲

Just finished this new mount. I love it. Any thoughts or suggestions? I'm pretty sure it's upright

Hi, last month I received this beauty as a gift. However, it's my first staghorn and I've no idea if it's happy or whether I should repot it? Seems like it's a cluster of 3-4 plants. I've been reading up about mounting it, but currently that is not an option for me. So do I need to repot it, or leave it as is. Is seems quite happy this past month here.

And if I do need to repot, should I get some special moss for it? I'm currently living in the Netherlands so any local advice would be highly appreciated too. Thanks so much in advance!