Water Sprite

Water Sprite Care

Ceratopteris Thalictroides

What is the plant

Plants usually rooted in mud, very variable in size and appearance, scales on rhizome peltate, thin, translucent, pale brown, (under a lens clear with dark cell walls) stipes 3 – 15 mm diameter in mature plants, spongy and air filled, sterile fronds pale green, thin, flaccid and spreading, 4 – 60 cm long, including a stipe c. half this length, fertile fronds pale green, to brown when over mature, firm, held erect, 15 – 100 cm or more long, including stipe to 40 cm long, proliferous or dormant buds with overlapping dark scales sometimes present in the axils of fertile pinnae (twice seen), sterile axes obviously winged, pinnae basically broad-ovate or deltoid with a few blunt lobes, sometimes more deeply incised, the segments 2 - 15 x 10 – 30 mm, fertile segments linear, 1 - 2 x 10 – 80 mm. Recent chromosome counts have shown that the north type and the third type both have chromosome counts of 2n=156, while the south type has a count of 2n=154, making it definitely a separate species.

Invasive in Western Australia.

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Humidity

Normal

Lighting

Part Sun

Temperature

-16°C - -6°C

Hardiness zone

max 9a

Difficulty

Medium

Hibernation

Cold Period

How to Care for the Plant

Water
Water Sprite is an aquatic plant and will at least remain partially submerged at all times. Therefore, it will most likely not require any watering. However, an important factor to keep in mind for a healthy plant is to stay away from direct water flow. This free-floating flora does best in standing water or very slow moving water. Too much movement in the water can damage the fern and stunt its growth.
Pruning
You can't really "trim"watersprite like you can many other plants. If you cut one of the "stems" that stem will die. The only real way to trim it is to remove the entire stem (I use that term loosely ... I believe the entire length is more of a leaf) down to the base of the plant.
Fertilizer
I have seen a lot of people suggest using fertilizers, CO2, and other things to keep Water Sprite healthy. Actually, in most cases, CO2 and fertilizers are not needed for healthy growth, but adding them will significantly increase the growth rate.

Disease diagnosis

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Sunlight
As far as lighting goes, Water Sprite will thrive in medium to high lighting conditions. Nonetheless, it will still grow under lower light or shade. The less light that the plant receives, the slower that it will grow. When setting up lighting inside of a vivarium, LED lights will work extremely well. Try to go for colors that resemble a bright day. Avoid any type of light that has high levels of UV rays. If the vivarium will not have any artificial lighting, try placing it near a bright window that does not get too much direct sun exposure.
Temperature
To keep healthy and happy water sprite, water temperature should always be constant between 68-82° F (20.0-27.8° C) with pH between 6.5-7.5. One thing to consider when stocking your planted aquarium though is that water sprite seems to prefer softer water, with KH between 3-8.
Container
Stem color may be a bit darker than the leaves, but stems are still on the light-green side. If planted or in a plastic container, the stems should be able to support the entire plant in an upright position. Plant roots should be long and as numerous as possible.