The plant Lemon Button Fern (Nephrolepis) is a species of the fern genus of the Lomariopsis family. In some classifications, this plant belongs to the Davalliev family. The Latin name was formed from two Greek words "nephros" and "lepis", which translate as "buds" and "scales", this is due to the shape of the veil. In the wild, there are about 30 species of such a plant, while it is distributed throughout the world. Nephrolepis comes from the shady forests of tropical America, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Australia. The fern is grown as an potted plant and is used as a decor for various interiors. In addition to the fact that such a plant has a spectacular appearance, it also perfectly cleans the air.
Basics
The herbaceous plant Nephrolepis can be terrestrial or epiphytic. Its rhizome is relatively short. The rosette includes greenish pinnate leaf plates with short petioles, their length is about 0.7 m. The plates include serrate-crenate lanceolate segments along the edge, their length is about 50 mm, on their seamy surface on both sides of the median vein are located rounded sori. Over time, the leaf plates turn yellow and die off. Leafless shoots extend from the rhizome, the surface of which is covered with scales. Such shoots quickly give roots when rooting.
Light
Sunlight must always be diffused, as direct scorching rays can harm the fern. In this regard, it is recommended for him to choose a place away from the window opening and from the direct rays of the sun. If you decide to give him a place on the windowsill, then preference should be given to those windows that are located in the western, northern, or eastern part of the room.
For normal development and growth, the duration of daylight hours required for Nephrolepis is from 14 to 16 hours in this regard, if you want your bush to be very lush and spectacular, then it will have to be supplemented. This fern develops within normal limits under fluorescent lamps, and therefore it is often adorned with the halls of large office centers or hotels.
Temperature regime
In the spring-summer period, the best air temperature for this plant will be from 20 to 24 degrees. However, if you moisten its foliage often enough with a spray bottle, then you can grow it at higher temperatures. During winter, it needs coolness (about 15 degrees), and remember that the bush should be located as far as possible from heating appliances. If you cannot transfer nephrolepis to a cool place for the winter, then let it grow where it grew, while moistening the foliage and watering it will be the same as in the warm season. During warm wintering, its growth and development will not stop, but they will slow down significantly.
Top dressing
Fern grown in room conditions must be systematically fed; for this, complex fertilizers are used for decorative deciduous plants, while the concentration of the nutrient solution should be one-fourth of that indicated on the package. Fertilizers are applied in March – September 3 or 4 times every 30 days. If the bush is in a cool place in winter, then there is no need to feed it at this time. However, if the bush hibernates in the warmth, then they continue to feed it, but they do this at intervals of no more than 1 time in 4 weeks.
Watering
Water the bush immediately after the top layer of the substrate in the container dries out. At the same time, the air temperature in the room has a direct effect on the frequency and abundance of watering, so the cooler the room, the less liquid the plant will need. During cool wintering, watering should be infrequent and more scarce than usual.
Air humidity
The humidity in the room where the fern is located should be increased. To achieve this, it is necessary to systematically and quite often moisten the foliage from the sprayer, and also try to arrange a shower flower at least 1 time in 30 days. To increase the moisture content, it is recommended to pour expanded clay or pebbles into the pallet and pour in enough water so that it does not come into contact with the bottom of the pot. For irrigation, you should use filtered or well-settled water at room temperature.
Transplation
While the plant is young, its transplant is carried out annually in spring, more mature specimens are transplanted no more than 1 time in 2 or 3 years. To grow such a crop, it is recommended to choose a plastic container, because moisture in it will retain moisture in the substrate much longer compared to ceramic pots. The bush has a superficial root system, therefore, it is worth choosing a low but wide capacity for planting it.
During the transplantation of the bush, for a start, a good drainage layer of expanded clay is made at the bottom of the container, after which it is covered with a layer of light soil mixture, its approximate composition: coniferous and greenhouse soil and high peat (1: 1: 1).
During transplanting, make sure that the root collar of the bush rises above the surface of the substrate. The first time after transplanting, the bush must be provided with constant high air humidity, and also make sure that the soil mixture in the pot is slightly damp all the time.
Possible problems
- Drying foliage. The most common reason that leaf plates dry out is very rare or poor watering. In the case when only the tips of the leaves dry up, the excessively low air humidity is to blame.
- Fly around the foliage. In some cases, the leaves can change their color to brown, after which they fold and fly around. This can happen for several reasons: the room is too cold, the bush is watered with too cool, hard or chlorinated water, or has been exposed to a draft.
- Dry specks on foliage. Most often, dry spots on the surface of the leaf plates appear as a result of sunburn.
