I’m pretty sure that my houseplants have traveled more than I have this past year. Every fall they are dragged from the front porch to live indoors on any available window sill where they remain until spring, when they’re dragged back out.
During these long, cold days of winter, even though the plants and I would both rather be outside, we’re grateful for the warmth and protection of the house.
My favorite houseplants are the ferns. I’ve created a bit of a small indoor “ferny glade” in the back where, on nice days, sunshine streams in. Here I have a couple of rabbit foot ferns, a bird’s nest, a small stag horn, an asparagus fern and a maidenhair. They all seem relatively happy, though growth is slower indoors and the green of their fronds is not quite as brilliant as it is on their outdoor summer growth. On the other hand, inside there are (usually) no squirrels to chew on the leaves and dig amongst the roots.
The point, though, is just to keep them alive and stable until warm weather comes again and they can journey back out to the front porch.
Several of these ferns I bought in those little “mini” pots, measuring only a couple of inches tall. I thought maybe they were dwarf varieties but no, all they wanted was a pot big enough to grow in and somebody to believe in them. My “mini” bird’s nest fern now has individual fronds over 24 inches long.
My oldest fern is a rabbit foot fern that I inherited from my husband’s mother (who died before I met Jack). Family legend says that this fern won a prize at one of the first Atlanta Flower Shows, decades ago. The best I can say about it now is that it’s still alive. I’m sure that even a rabbit foot fern runs out of luck and dies at some point.
I’m grateful to be surrounded by greenery as I wait for spring but I have to admit, I’m ready for warm weather and to do some traveling myself, hopefully a little farther than the front porch this year!
How much do you water your rabbit’s foot? My fern’s fronds turn a coppery brown and snap off during their sojourn indoors for the winter. It puts forth new fronds and becomes lush again in warm weather, but yours looks like it thrives year-round.
(I like your new picture.)
Sharee, thanks for your question. It’s a good one. I water all my ferns at least twice a week while they’re indoors. The air in the house is much drier than the outside air. Ferns are great about telling you when they’re thirsty. Browning edges and dead leaves indicate they probably need more water. Just be sure that the soil is well drained and the roots don’t become waterlogged. Good luck!