Ant Fern
Taxonomy
Lecanopteris mirabilis
Lecanopteris
Polypodiaceae
Polypodiales
How to care for Ant Fern
How often to water your Ant Fern
every 7
Ant Fern needs 0.5 cups of water every 7 when it doesn’t get direct sunlight and is potted in a 5" pot.
Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.
Water 0.5 cups every
7
Finding light for Ant Fern in your home
a window
Ant Fern may have difficulty thriving, and will drop leaves 🍃, without ample sunlight.
Place it less than 3 feet from a south-facing window to maximize the potential for growth.
Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement of Ant Fern in your home 🏡.
How to fertilize Ant Fern
Most potting soils come with ample nutrients which plants use to produce new growth.
By the time your plant has depleted the nutrients in its soil it’s likely grown enough to need a larger pot anyway.
To replenish this plant's nutrients, repot your Ant Fern after it doubles in size or once a year—whichever comes first.
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Just received this beauty and still unsure if it is a blue fern or a kangaroo paw. How do I know for sure?
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I have ZERO experience with ferns... Rescued this guy but he's not happy! #kangaroopawfern Hi Greggers! Another rescue of mine needing your green-fingered advice so I can (hopefully) help him! I "rescued" Sherlock about 3 weeks ago, he was REALLY root bound but I resisted the temptation to repot him whilst he went through isolation, and finally repotted him at the weekend there. I didn't have a terracotta pot so he is in plastic, but I carefully researched the right mix for him (as I do with all my new plants... I like to use Soil Ninja mixes and additions and mix my own). Here's the question... How do I make him happy? He's under a grow light until the really good weather starts (I'm in Scotland, and he's besides, but not right in, a SE facing window). His roots were actually pretty healthy but I removed any damaged ones before repotting and had to snip quite a few leaves which were paling and crisping. I know they're supposed to be deep, dark green, shiny and leathery looking when healthy but he's been mistreated (sorry to the original owner! But it's true lol) and there are fine brown edges & veining to some of his leaves still (I didn't want to shock him too badly so only removed the worst!). He gets misted regularly and is with my other tropicals so he has plenty of surrounding moisture. What else can I do? I have no clue about ferns so ... All advice is welcome! 🥰 Thank you lovely people! X
Care Summary for Ant Fern
Ant Fern
Greg recommends:
Water
0.5 cups every 7 days
Placement
< 3ft from a window
Nutrients
Repot after 2x growth
Based on the 4” pot your plant is in, and that it doesn’t get direct sunlight.