Athyrium

Family. Asplenioideae.

Origin. Australia.

Description. Athyrium is a stunningly beautiful, lacy herbaceous plant - a fern with delicate, curved, feathery fronds. The fronds are triangular, up to 50 cm long, bright green, silver, bronze or purple. One of the most attractive types of ferns. The rhizome is small, covered with scales, creeping.

Height. The length of the wai indoors is up to 50 cm.

Caring

Keep the fern pot away from direct sun and drafts, provide the necessary humidity and the plant will look quite healthy. Older outer branches of the athyrium may turn brown - this is normal. You can trim them at the base to keep the plant tidy. In summer, you can take it out into the fresh air. 

When it blooms 

Doesn't bloom.

Reproduction

Small daughter plants often appear on the fronds of this fern, which are planted in separate pots. Controversial, but often only specialists can do this. 

Soil 

Based on peat with the addition of perlite.

Growing conditions - temperature

The ideal range is 18 - 20º C, not lower than 5º C in winter. Athyrium can tolerate hot summer weather only with an adequate increase in humidity. 

Lighting

Moderate light without direct sun, rotate the plant pot regularly to ensure the fern develops symmetrically and bushily. Leaves can become sunburned if exposed to direct sunlight. 

Fertilizer

Every 2 weeks in the spring and summer, feed the athyrium with half strength liquid fertilizer to stimulate new growth and healthy-looking leaves. 

Spraying

Place the pot on a tray of wet pebbles or use a humidifier if the indoor humidity drops below 50%. 

Watering

Keep the soil evenly moist. Water the plant so that water does not enter the outlet. In winter, reduce watering. Avoid stagnation of water at the roots - it can cause rotting.  For irrigation, use softened water at room temperature - for example, bottled, rain, melted water. To reduce hardness, you can add regular baking soda to tap water - a teaspoon per 2 liters of water. 

Transfer

You should not change the pot too often, as the root system of the fern is small. Adult plants are repotted every 2 years, young specimens - every year.

Diseases and pests of the athyrium

Do not use insecticides as the delicate leaves are easily damaged by chemicals. Dry air and lack of moisture cause the leaves to turn brown. Pale leaves and stunted growth indicate a lack of nutrients.

Harmful insects attack the athyrium extremely rarely; sometimes mealybugs and spider mites appear. When kept outdoors in warm temperatures for months, slugs and snails may encroach on the fern.

Purpose

Quite compact, but very decorative fern.

Varieties:

Athyrium niponicum

An evergreen fern, the height of which ranges from 30 to 45 cm. The plant has an underground, creeping, thick rhizome. The ground part of the plants is represented by wide, triangular, repeatedly dissected fronds, often colored in unusual shades. Fronds can be green, silver-blue, purple and even pink. 

Athyrium niponicum Ursulas Red

A bright evergreen fern from 15 to 45 cm in height. The fronds are wide, triangular, up to 45 cm long, soft, repeatedly dissected. The color of the plant is unusual and very attractive - the edges of the leaves have a silver-blue or pinkish tint, while the center of the fronds is colored deep purple, burgundy or brown.

Athyrium Japanese

Evergreen decorative deciduous ferns, reaching a height of 30 - 45 cm. The fronds are airy, light, soft, reaching a length of 35 - 40 cm, repeatedly dissected. The color of the fronds is variable and can include green, bluish green, mint, silver and purple shades. The leaf petioles are often colored in a contrasting burgundy shade. 

Athyrium sinese

A large evergreen fern with a thick, erect, short rhizome densely covered with brown scales. The fronds are wide, triangular, reaching a length of 35 to 90 cm. The shades of the fronds include all shades of green, yellow, brownish, and bright burgundy. Each frond bears a huge number of oblong, oval, jagged leaves with a glossy surface. 

Athyrium distentifolium

Large, attractive, evergreen ferns with long, oblong-triangular fronds consisting of numerous feathery leaves. Shades of wai include all shades of green. The plant is very lush, voluminous, airy.

Athyrium 'Frizelliae'

Compact, evergreen ferns, reaching only 30 cm in height, have very narrow fronds - not exceeding 2 cm in width and 40 cm in length. Each frond has round, jagged, glossy leaves, collected in small, alternately arranged bunches. The leaves can be colored in all shades of green. 

Athyrium otophorum

A delicate evergreen fern, 30 to 60 cm high, with a short, erect, brown rhizome. The fronds are lacy, repeatedly dissected, airy, on long petioles, broadly triangular in shape. The fronds can be colored in various shades of green, the petioles of the leaves often have a contrasting burgundy or dark brown color.