I wrote a post a while ago on my variegated maidenhair fern. I mentioned how I didn't look after it properly and it died back to a single frond, and how at that stage it was starting to regain strength.
I was worried because variegated maidenhair ferns are rare and incredibly difficult to find, so if I lost mine I probably would never be able to get another one. Variegated maiden hair ferns are really lovely, so I would hate to lose mine.
It has been almost a year since my previous post, so I thought it may be time for an update. As you can see, my variegated maidenhair fern (top right of the following two photos below) is doing well.
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| Variegated maidenhair top right |
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| Variegated maidenhair fern almost a year ago top right |
I grow my variegated maidenhair fern outside where it is under cover and slightly sheltered. I had it inside my house for some time but there was not enough light for it, which meant it declined badly. Outside on my verandah this plant gets hit by strong winds, over winter it gets some light frost, and it gets too hot over summer, but my maidenhair ferns perform surprisingly well out there.
Too many people complain that they have killed a maidenhair fern, they usually blame the fern and assume they are difficult to grow. Maidenhair ferns are not what I would consider to be very hardy, but they are simple to grow. I wrote a blog post on how I grow maidenhair ferns. While I am not an expert, they grow well for me, and that post explains how I grow them.
I have grown this variegated maidenhair fern for almost six years, and I also have a green maidenhair fern (bottom right of the photos above) that I have been growing for close to eight years. While I am not an expert in ferns, the longevity of these plants show the way I grow them works well.
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| Variegation is different on each of the pinnules |
Maidenhair ferns don't like to dry out, but they are not swamp plants. I use self watering pots that have a little reservoir of water. This ensures they have constant access to water but are not overly wet.
I am told that maidenhair ferns do well in hanging baskets. The ones I have seen in hanging baskets look incredible. I don't grow these ferns, or any plants, in hanging baskets because I can't work out how to do it. I can't work out how to water them easily, I worry that the wind will knock them down, and I don't have anywhere sensible to hang them. If you have success growing things in hanging baskets I think a variegated maidenhair fern would look incredible growing in one.
Any variegated plant will be weaker than an all green one, variegated maidenhair ferns are no exception to this. Direct sunlight scorches their fronds. They also don't cope with total darkness, less chlorophyll means they are less efficient at photosynthesis.
Chlorophyll allows plants to photosynthesize and also acts like sunscreen. Being variegated means they will burn easily, and be less able to cope with lack of light. I grow them in 'bright shade' where they get an hour or so of direct light at sunrise. Too much direct sunlight tends to burn them, but a little direct sunlight in the morning seems to be fine.
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| Variegated Maidenhair Fern |
I mentioned in my previous post how I would normally rotate my fern each week to ensure it grew out evenly, at that stage my fern was still weak so I was not rotating it. This was a good idea and it worked out well.
My fern had little energy and only one frond. It grew new fronds and orientated them to catch the light in the most efficient way possible, and it regained strength. The fern grew a bit lop sided, but that was ok.
Once it was a little stronger and a bit more healthy I started to rotate the pot a little bit each week. This helped the growth to even out a bit, and my fern continued to get stronger. It was still lo[p sided, but was less uneven and getting healthier.
When my variegated maiden hair fern got even larger I would rotate the pot 90 degrees each week. As you can see from the photo below, my fern now has reasonably even growth on all sides. This is what I wanted it to do.
Not only does it have even growth on all sides, but my fern is now reasonably large and healthy.
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| Variegated maidenhair fern with even growth |
If you have followed my blog you will probably have noticed that I am not a photographer. Regular maidenhair ferns are graceful, variegated maiden hair ferns are incredibly graceful and even more elegant, my photos do not do it justice.
I also realise that the photos I take of the entire plant don't really show the variegation. While I don't encourage people to touch the fronds of maidenhair ferns, you can see the variegation a little more easily when I do hold my hand underneath.
New fronds start out green, with lighter green where the variegation will develop. As the frond ages the variegated parts turn white. On each frond some pinnules will be entirely green, some might be entirely white, and most will have some amount of green and white. My fern hasn't produces any entirely green fronds.
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| Variegated fern |
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| Variegation |
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| Maidenhair variegation |
One thing I notice is that this fern grows a little differently than my other maidenhair ferns. I was told it was Adiantum raddianum 'Variegata' but to be honest I am not certain about the species. I grow a few different species of maidenhair ferns. Perhaps my variegated fern is a different species to my other maidenhair ferns, or perhaps it is the same species with different growth characteristics.
It is not quite as large as my other ferns, and I don't think it ever will be. The fronds of my variegated maidenhair fern often reach 40cm, occasionally some of them reach 50cm. I have a feeling that this is as large as they will ever grow. My other maidenhair ferns have fronds that regularly exceed 50cm. I think some of my other maidenhair ferns have potential to row quite a bit larger but are restricted due to the size of their pots.
The fronds of my variegated maiden hair fern are often divided at the tip. You can see this in the photo below. Not every frond does this, but it appears that most of the larger mature fronds do.
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| Variegated maidenhair fronds tend to be divided at the tip |
It appears that my variegated maiden hair fern is doing well. I am tempted to try and divide it.
Dividing my fern will set it back considerably, and will mean that its growth is no longer even. I am not overly keen on this because my variegated maidenhair looks so large and impressive at the moment.
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| Variegated maidenhair fern |
Dividing it would also mean that I will have two of them, which will help to ensure that I don't lose it if the pot gets knocked over by a possum or something. Very few places sell variegated maidenhair ferns, and the few that do seem to be sold out for most of the year.
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| Variegated fronds |
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| Variegation is different on each pinnule |
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| My photos really don't do them justice |
I like maidenhair ferns, and I really like this variegated form. I should try to grow some from spores and see how much genetic diversity they have.
I sell some maidenhair ferns through my for sale page, and if I ever have any variegated ones spare I will probably offer them for sale through there too.
Unless I grow a lot from spores, or have success with growing them using tissue culture, it is unlikely that I will ever be able to offer many for sale, but it is worth keeping an eye on my for sale page if you are interested in them.
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