The Bird's Nest Fern or Asplenium nidus is one of the several popular and beautiful ferns grown as houseplants. Ferns like this one can be grown in North facing windows perfectly well and will truly relish the type of light and cooler temperatures these places receive.
In return the Bird's Nest Fern will give you lots of naturally glossy leaves arranged in a circular pattern which resemble a bird's nest (hence the common name for these houseplants).
Bird Nest Ferns can look good in many areas of your home
These Ferns have very few problems, are cheap to purchase and readily available. They're particularly good indoor plants for bathrooms or a frequently used kitchen because these places tend to have a steamy atmosphere.
This is important because a Bird Nest Fern needs some humidity to really thrive indoors, they'll still cope and deal with an average room but for that extra shine and extra large size you'll need to be misting regularly.
Alternatively, if you don't have the time for all that misting, the Bird Nest Fern is an ideal plant to keep in a home terrarium or glass bottle garden, these enclosed spaces create naturally moist and protective environments that many types of plants, including most ferns, will do well in.
The older glass bottle garden are a little old fashioned we'd admit, but as design pieces themselves they have started to become more popular again with interior designers. You may have a larger selection to pick from at car boot sales or in antique shops, but Amazon have a few of the more modern fashion trends to give you some inspiration. Take a look at the links below.
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When it comes to what Bird Nest Ferns you can buy there is generally really only the common type and that is Asplenium nidus. As with most ferns it's difficult to create different cultivars, although you may still be able to find some which have curly or frilly ruffled leaves if you search hard enough.
The photo below shows a newer cultivar called "Crispy Wave" because of how the entire leaf from base to tip is crinkled.
Although harder to find, there are cultivars out there that have crinkled rather than flat leaves
Even if you can't find different varieties in your local houseplant stores, a lot of people would say the original is potentially the most beautiful looking anyway. So now you know a bit about the plant let's get cracking with the care instructions.
Hi, I'm Tom!
If you're like me and enjoy the challenge of growing houseplants and getting them to thrive, then Ourhouseplants can help. This website shares my knowledge and years of growing plants and provides (hopefully) helpful advice on properly caring for your indoor plant friends.
Only medium light levels are needed for the Bird's Nest Fern to do well and if this can be at a consistent level over the day that's even better. This is in part why they make ideal investments for your tricky North facing windows, this type of light is loved by artists and by this houseplant.
If you don't have such a spot or your rooms don't face North just be sure to keep it out of direct sunlight and it should be fine.
You shouldn't be allowing the soil to dry out at all, instead keep the soil just moist throughout the entire growing
Ferns often fail in homes because of the way they are treated when it comes to watering - either they get too much water or not enough.
Although the odd mistake won't hurt, you need to try and work with your Fern by keeping the soil just moist throughout the entire growing seasons (Spring, Summer and Autumn / Fall).
This means you shouldn't be allowing the soil to dry out at all, but equally you mustn't water so much and often that the soil is soggy or wet.
In Winter you only need to water every few weeks at most, because the need for water drastically reduces at this time of year and a lot of unused water sitting around the roots will encourage rotting.
The plant loves high humidity to really thrive, which is another reason why they adore humid terrariums, sunrooms and conservatories.
TIP - The key to growing a very large Bird Nest Fern is to focus on humidity.
You can of course still grow a more modest sized plant without specialist equipment, our humidity guide should give you some easy ideas and pointers.
The Bird's Nest is not very fussy when it comes fertilizing (providing you don't over do it), but over a long period the leaves will dull and growth will come to a halt if you never provide any feed. It's best therefore to either feed very weakly once a month or so when in active growth, or at normal strength once every 3 - 6 months.
Cool to average warmth is what you want to provide here. This is one of the few houseplants which can struggle in really warm rooms, so it might not be the best choice for a hot living room, snug or next to a radiator or open fire.
A temperature within the following range is needed for it to do well, 10°C (50°F) - 22°C (72°F).
Bird's Nest Ferns will grow well in cooler spots in your home
It's time to repot when the thin roots completely fill the existing pot, once this has happened it's time to move it on into a slightly larger container. If you don't, growth will stall before eventually stopping completely.
As a rule of thumb a young Bird Nest Fern plant will need to be repotted once every year until it reaches a good size, after which you will only need to repot perhaps once every couple of years.
Bear in mind that even large plants can still do well in smaller pots (see photo above) so there is no need to repot into a significantly bigger pot each time. Just be prepared to water more often as a smaller container will store less moisture.
These plants do really well in small pots, so repotting isn't essential if you want a bigger plant
When you're getting your hands dirty with repotting your fern, you don't need to use or do anything particularly fancy. Standard potting soil is fine and if the roots are very compacted you might want to gently loosen them a little with your fingers.
When you're packing everything into the new pot, it's important that the crown is not buried - It must sit at the same level it sat at in the previous pot.
Ferns, including the Asplenium, will form spores in time which can be used to propagate new plants. Although we will give most things a try, propagating ferns using this method is not one of them. It's really difficult and you do need special equipment to pull it off successfully.
So instead we'd rather spend a little money (because they're normally cheap plants anyway) and buy new ones if we want more.
Providing you are caring for your Bird's Nest Fern correctly, growth will be quite rapid and regular during the growing seasons, new leaves will constantly emerge from the central "nest". A word of caution however - you must not handle the delicate young fronds as they're emerging because of how fragile they are. New fronds have a high chance of becoming damaged and deformed if you touch them, so try not to.
Growth will be slow if the roots have no space to grow into or when the temperature is very cold.
A max height of 120cm / 4ft and a spread of 90cm / 3ft can be attained after many years but only in an environment that is very humid. Half these size estimates in a normal room.
Does the Bird's Nest Fern have flowers? The answer to this is no it doesn't. Instead this houseplant is all about the lush tropical and tranquil looking foliage.
No, this fern isn't toxic to people, cats or dogs.
Ferns in general are quite sensitive to chemicals so you must avoid leaf shine products to prevent issues. The leaves are naturally glossy anyway, but of course if they start to dull from dust you can just pop the plant under a warm shower for a minute to wash the grime away.
Average Light The perfect plant for those spots in your home that receive less light. No direct sunlight, but don't hide it in a gloomy corner either.
Average Watering It's forgiving if you let the soil dry out occasionally, but for a thriving plant keep the soil "just moist" all year round.
Cool to Average Temperature Provide temperatures between 10°C (50°F) - 22°C (72°F).
Feeding Feed weakly once a month or at normal strength once every two or three months.
Why are there are dark brown spots on the fronds / leaves?
In most cases these spots are actually spores, which are basically seeds. It's perfectly normal and indicates you've a mature and healthy plant, just leave them as they are.
Make sure however the brown spots aren't Scale Insects which can look awfully similar. Spores will be regularly spaced and only appear on older Bird Nest Ferns, whereas Scale will have a random pattern and can afflict a plant at any age.
If you do have a Scale Insect problem get rid of them quickly to prevent them from spreading to other houseplants. The link above will help you get to grips with doing this.
Brown Fuzz on the Fronds
This is quite a common issue and you will usually see it in Spring and early Summer. The fronds are covered in a fine brown hairy type of fuzz. Fortunately it's not a problem, has a simple explanation and fix.
Birds Nest Fern with brown Fuzz on the fronds
If you look down into the heart of your plant you will often see a brown mound that looks a bit like a truffle chocolate. New Fronds or "fiddleheads" emerge from this central part of the plant and grow out of the mound. When this happens and the frond pushes through, it brings with it some brown fuzz which sticks to the frond.
It's totally harmless. You can leave it alone and it will eventually dry out and become like dust. Although, if you really don't like it, you can gently wash it off. Either way not a big issue or something to be concerned about.
Why are there brown tips on the leaves on my Bird's Nest Fern?
In most cases this is a result of dry air, or allowing the soil to dry out too much before re watering. On occasion it can also be an indication you're overwatering. Remember that the soil should be moist for much of the time, not really dry or really wet.
Why are the leaves on my Bird's Nest Fern turning yellow?
If the yellowing starts at the ends of the fronds this is probably normal aging. If the yellow is starting from the base of the fronds then the temperature is likely on the high side, find a cooler place in your home for it to live. Other causes could be from using hard cold water, exposure to draughts, or chemicals.
Over the last 20 years, Tom has successfully owned hundreds of houseplants and is always happy to share knowledge and lend his horticulture skills to those in need. He is the main content writer for the Ourhouseplants Team.
Credit for the Asplenium nidus photo in the green - Gallery - KENPEI
Credit for the Bird Nest Fern by a fireplace - Article / Gallery - Zell
