With their lush, verdant fronds and diverse textures, tropical ferns can transform any indoor or outdoor space into a prolific oasis. Whether you want to add a touch of the tropics to your living room or create a shaded garden retreat, selecting the right ferns and understanding their care requirements is essential. These plants thrive in humid environments with indirect light, perfect for bathrooms, kitchens, or shaded garden corners. Each variety brings unique charm and needs, from the delicate Maidenhair Fern to the striking Staghorn Fern. In this article, we’ll explore the best tropical ferns for both indoor and outdoor settings, along with tips on keeping them healthy and vibrant year-round
Tropical ferns are a wonderful addition to any garden or indoor space, offering lush greenery and unique textures. Here’s a guide to help you select and grow these beautiful plants:
The Important Features Of Tropical Ferns
What we love about tropical ferns are their large, leathery fronds, or leaves. They are broad and often divided into smaller leaflets. Tropica l ferns live in a forest understory and the fronds capture sunlight in the naturally low-light environment. Hairs and scales protect the fronds and the plant can spread by rhizomes.
On the undersides of the fronds, you will see tiny brown dots, these are spores. They are important because ferns do not reproduce like many other plants by flowers and seeds but by spores. When the spores germinate, they will grow into tiny plants called prothalli. When the time is right, the spores are released into the air, and if they land on a home with the right conditions a new fern is born.
Where We Got Ferns And How That Influences Their Life Form
Some Beautiful Varieties of Tropical Ferns
Birds Nest Fern-Asplenium nidus
A fascinating plant, the bird’s nest fern, has wide, stemless fronds that radiate out, in the form of circular layers creating a sort of bird’s nest form. Native to tropical Asia it will thrive if you can give it partial to full shade, rich soil, and a humid environment. Also, do not let it dry out. You can plant it in a container or in the ground and as an epiphyte you can display it on a tree or even on a rock.
The plant is found in nature, growing on tree limbs in wild places from Southeast Asia to Africa. However, as a house plant is considered one of the easiest tropical ferns to grow.
Blue Star Fern-Phlebodium aureum
The blue star fern has some unique features for us. First is the unusual blue shade, and next is the fact that as an epiphyte, you can grow it, attached to a tree if your garden is in Zones 10-11. As houseplants, they may have the biggest gift! With our dry homes, it can be an effort to make some tropical plants happy. This tropical fern is one of the easiest to grow as a houseplant. If you have not started yet, this might be your starter plant.
Daderot, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons, this photo was taken at Longwood Gardens
Kangaroo Paw Fern- Microsorum diversifolium
This fern is native to Australia, its binomial name refers to its various leaf forms. Leaves can be entire or have deep indentations.
For this one, let the top two inches dry out before rewatering.
Sarah Stierch, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimed
Maidenhair Fern-Adiantum raddianum
Maidenhair Fern will bring a delicate addition to your indoor garden or outdoors in a warm climate garden. This plant is known for its airy, fan-shaped leaf segments and wiry black stems, this fern brings a touch of elegance and lush greenery to your environment.
Staghorn Fern-Platycerium spp.
This is a striking fern whose fronds look like anthers. There are about 18 species of them and they are all epiphytic. Epiphytic plants live on another plant but do not need it for food. It takes its nutrition from air and water.
It is native to Java, Southern Australia, and New Guinea rainforest areas. Grow them indoors or out. In our South Florida town, one hangs from a Live Oak tree, the plant is about the size of a Volkswagon!
Selecting Tropical Ferns
Tropical ferns have few but specific requirements. If you can meet them, indoors or out in the garden, you will enjoy seasons and years of pleasure with them.
Create The Climate Ferns Need (Indoors And Out)
Ferns are widespread plants, appearing in all continents except Antarctica. They are most commonly found in tropical rainforests and in is the tropical ferns that are the subjects of this article.
Climate Conditions For Tropical Ferns, Indoors And Out
We are working with ferns that originated in the understory of tropical and subtropical rainforests. This is the environment we need to recreate. The ferns are easiest to raise in North America in hardiness Zones 9-11(and this can vary a bit by fern type.) In our Zone 10 garden the temperature, humidity, and soil are just right. If you are growing ferns indoors, humidity is your biggest challenge. Fortunately, houseplants tend to have tropical origins. Group together your humidity lovers, use moisture trays with rocks, and mist the plants. Humid rooms, perhaps kitchens and bathrooms are good places too.
Here are your climate goals:
- Keep daytime temperatures between 65–75°F, and nighttime temperatures about 10°F cooler. Avoid placing ferns near cold drafts, fireplaces, or air vents.
- Ferns prefer high humidity, around 40–50%, but can tolerate as low as 30%.
- Ferns can grow in varied light conditions, but they do best in medium light, from an east-facing window or a few feet from a south or west-facing window.
- Ferns prefer consistently moist soil, so you may need to water them daily. However, they can rot if kept in wet soil for too long, so use a container with good drainage. Test soil moisture with your finger or a monitor and always check the drainage holes for blockages.
Light Conditions For Tropical Ferns
- Your tropical fern will perform best in partial shade or indirect light. Avoid direct sunlight in all cases, but recognize that some ferns can accept more or less light.
Other Issues In Growing Your Tropical Ferns
- Soil: Tropical ferns are native to areas with soil rich with organic matter; provide soil with humus but also well draining. You can make a mix with sterilized potting soil or garden soil (outdoors), peat moss will maintain moisture, and sand will provide drainage.
- Water: Keep the soil consistently moist and do not allow it to dry out completely. Do not allow it to be waterlogged.
Other Maintenance
Observe your plants regularly. You will learn a lot by wandering through your plants, indoors or out, with your morning coffee. Any problem caught early is much easier to handle, and less expensive too.
- Tale your disinfected garden snippers and prune often. Remove any dead and damaged fronds and take the opportunity to look the plant over. This is the first step in any IPM program.
- Look for Pests: Common pests are aphids and spider mites, keep an insecticidal soap or neem oil ready.
- Seasonal Care: If you take your plant outside for the summer and indoors for the winter do not forget to allow time to acclimate the plants.
- Potting Up or Separating: Is the plant top-heavy, has the plant’s weight increased, are roots growing through the drainage hole, is the soil pulling away from the pot? It is time to repot to a larger container.
- Should I Separate the Plant? Is the plant very big? Would I prefer more plants? To separate your big plant, first tip the plant carefully out of the pot, clean off excess soil and cut the root ball in pieces with a clean sharp knife. Report in new smaller pots with some fresh soil mix.
Resources You Can Use
The Tropical Fern Society: See the website for interesting and rare ferns.
Which Tropical Fern Is Right For Me?
Growing Tropical Ferns Indoors-University of Minnesota
Fabulous Ferns-University of Florida
The New Tropical Gardener’s Guide To Lush Foliage Plants
Summary,
Selecting and growing tropical ferns can transform your indoor and outdoor spaces into lush, green havens. If you are new to growing tropical ferns indoors start with varieties known to be successful indoors like the Boston fern. Place them near east-facing windows or a few feet from west or south-facing windows to ensure they receive the right amount of indirect light. Be ready to water and mist as needed.
For outdoor growth, select ferns that are well-suited to your local climate. For tropical ferns, your garden should be in Zones 9-11. If you love ferns in the garden and have the proper light conditions start with the local native varieties. Ensure they are planted in well-draining soil rich in organic matter. Ferns generally, prefer shaded or partially shaded areas, making them perfect for under trees or in garden corners that receive dappled sunlight. Regular watering and mulching will keep the soil moist and cool, promoting healthy growth. Indoors or outside in your gardens, tropical ferns will enhance your environment.
If you have grown tropical ferns, or are hoping to start, let me know how it goes.!