How to Grow Staghorn Ferns from Spores Platycerium superbum
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- čas přidán 8. 07. 2020
- Hello,
This episode is directed at a young man called Leith as well as anyone else who has ever wondered how to grow ferns from spore. He has an absolute fascination with ferns and has asked me to do an episode on fern germination. So this is it. I know I call it a 'quick and dirty', but ferns are really slow and the process can be simple but care needs to be taken when sowing. Also, be patient because ferns take a long time to become ferns, 'as we know them'.
Platycerum superbum is a giant of staghorns and is a really beautiful epiphytic plant to grow. I have grown many ferns before and this is a basic simple method to use. Remember if you don't have fungicide that is okay, just ensure you heat the (moistened) medium for 3 minutes in a container that you are sure will not melt. Lastly, remember to label, label and label your containers. Keep them above 23 degrees celsius or on a heating mat out of direct sunlight.
Contact the South African Fern Society at:
fernsoc.za@gmail.com
Hope you guys enjoy this! Please give us a thumbs up if you do, be great to hear from you.
Stay well and safe.
Gabriel - Věda a technologie
My jaw dropped when I saw those tiny ones were 2 years old.
Yep, ferns are slow....lol!
Gabriel is absolutely fantastic, he is very thorough and detailed explanation on how to germinate the fern spores. Keep up good work!!
Hey Matthew, shot for that! One of my cats unfortunately knocked over my containers and I had to start from scratch, luckily the ferns still had some spore and I didn't need to wait an entire growing cycle.
I use a shot glass with ladies stocking over the glass and shake it like salt an pepper.It get the spores nice and even..
Hey Danny, thanks for that tip. Will definitely invest in some leggings for Xmas 😜✌
keep sharing... god bless
Thank you! You too! Glad you appreciate the content. I will upload something new every Sunday.🙂
Awesome! Would love an update!
Coming soon! I have had to restart it. Cats knocked containers. Basically wait until you see the first fronds emerge. Then you can begin removing the largest of them first.
Didication and hard work, no wonder they are relatively expensive. Well done
Thanks, they are doing really well now. Will do a five minuter on how it is going😀 Thanks for that....patience really is key here😅
The intro makes me want to visit South Africa :O
Whenever you get the opportunity, definitely do that. A lot of what is seen in the media about South Africa is rubbish propaganda. It has issues like any other place, poverty is notable in many areas but it is a great country filled with many beautiful vegetation types, landscapes, plants and people. So much more. I love it! Glad you liked the intro, I have a series of videos I am working on which showcases some 'wild' areas of our country. Watch this space!
I noticed fungi in my substrate last night. I spread with fungicide. In the morning, the fungi are gone, but so are some of my gametophytes. Do you dilute the fungicide, or use it liberally? I am wondering if the drug has any effects on gametophyte. Thanks.
Hey, you're welcome. Thanks for the response. Hope yours grows beautifully.
Is there a Peat free alternative medium or can staghorns only grow in peat? I imagine them as rainforest plants not bog plants?
Hi there, oh yeah sure they can. I often use clean perlite to this too, and it works really well to get them going once I see little plants I add a bit of osmocote to the surface.
Can I pls ask some advice. SA Randburg, Gauteng. Found a +-15 year old Staghorn in a pot. It's taken punishment, direct sun, no special care. But it's done surprisingly well. The pot is bursting and I'm so scared to tackle this. Want to move some babies into trees. The bigger one, must it just be left as one unit and put in a bigger pot or try mount it in a tree?
Howsit Nicky
Sheesh, potted Platys are always a challenge since the pot is a most unnatural position for them. I would suggest removing some of the offsets first and mounting them. Then, how large is the pot? You may need to augment the root ball of the plant in order to get it shaped up for attachment to a tree. I would ensure that the plant is cared for first and just brought back to a healthy, strong situation and then attempt shaping and mounting the plant. These plants are sold in pots when young but should never be allowed to develop in them. Find me on FB and perhaps you can send me some photos of this situation?
Hope it helps.
Gabriel
Nice to see another video! Love staghorns. I wonder: I have 3 of them... How can I use their spores to propagate them, or better said, how can I know when to collect them? I don't have a microwave, I suppose I can sanitize everything with alccol right? looking forward the next one!
Hey Yoora, thanks. Oh, three species? What are they and where are you from? I have added a link to a video I did on the subject. Not sure if you've seen it, anyway... keep gardening! ")
czcams.com/video/C5IqXX-er4o/video.html
Hi, can you please show what to expect in subsequent stages until a fern plant is formed.
Hey Danny, thanks for that Q. Yeah, will be doing some updates on them.
Also wondering this now that I have tons of what look like gametophytes after a year and some change. Everything is just vibing, but not really progressing
What do I do if I spot some fungi inside the container after sewing the spores?
Hey Rodrigo
So this is a problem for many. There is no hard and fast method that works, so you may need to try a few and see which you have success with. I actually use a sterilized pair of forceps and remove the area and a bit beyond that. Alternatively I have read that a VERY week bleach solution may kill off some of these opportunists (although I haven't tried this myself yet). Also a weak fungicide solution seems to work but I find they also hurt the Prothalli that develop so that was not an option either. Lastly, depending on the stage of development you can decide to provide a nice warm semi shaded place that seems to remain humid and damp and open the container and allow them to develop further. This has worked for me. The mould, fungi or algae don't seem to thrive and eventually die off. Phew that was a long one but I hope you have success! Ciao!
Hello! I currently have small ferns, like you showed in the pot near the beginning. Now I am ready for the next step. How do I separate them?
Hey there, honestly... you don't. Not until you see actual fronds, if this is the case then moisten the medium and pick out only the largest ones first. Refil the spaces with clean coco-peat. Pot them up in a coco-peat based medium with a controlled release fertiliser or mount them directly.
@@gardeningwithgabriel6698 Thank you so much! I have small fronds on 2 of them, but I'll let them grow some more
Great video. Have killed every stag horn I ever bought. Hoping to try to grow my own after watching this. Where can I get the spores here in Texas/USA??
I am all the way over in South Africa but I've had a look and found this link, hope it helps:
plants.buchanansplants.com/12250003/Plant/25619/Staghorn_Fern/
Try Fern Plantation in magnolia, TX
Can I put slow release fertilizer in the container? 14-14-14...
Yes, do that too but not directly on the prothali
I have serious questions
Anyone can answer
Why must grow in a container like that, while in habitat the spores can naturally grow? Can we just pour the spores on a spaghnum moss (without container) and keep the moisture everyday?
Hey, sure, try it. My assumption is that with a container you are able to apply greater stability as far as temperature, light and foreign potentially dangerous spores are concerned. Remember you're doing it to ensure that the spores are not overwhelmed by random fungi, or something that may prey on your spores.
H Gabriel, love your channel! I've been propogating staghorn ferns from spore for about a year now and have some small plantlets. I wondered if you had any images of what the young fernlets look like as I'm now suspicious that the spores were not of staghorns but a different variety of fern. I bought the spores from an online seller.
Hi there, I am back on my 'feet', and will be putting out all of the content I have in my pipeline including those from relevant questions such as yours. Thanks for the question... keeps my brain alive....lol! 🌱
Would love to see an update !!!
Unfortunately my cats knocked it off my grow area twice after a years worth of development. I have harvested more spore just this summer so will definitely do a continuation on it.😺
@@gardeningwithgabriel6698 Thanks !!
Thank you very much!!!👌👌
You're welcome :)
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Watch platycerium in sri lanka
I'm on it thanks