Rabbitâs foot fern troubles
My rabbitâs foot fern seems to have taken a sudden decline over the course of a few days. It has began dropping curly brown fronds and looks much thinner and skimpier than itâs usual self. Some of the Greg plant profile is not entirely accurate because I didnât have the options I needed to describe the situation of this plant. Itâs in a bioactive terrarium for a reptile, so glass-sided terrarium with screen top. The substrate consists of a dirt layer, rock and charcoal drainage layer, and hydroponic clay beads at the bottom to control the absorption and re-release of moisture through the substrate. The current temp and humidity of the setup is 70°F and 75%RH. The club mosses and asparagus fern sharing the terrarium all seem to be doing fine. Any idea whatâs making her so unhappy? #FernFriends #RabbitFootFern #bioactiveterrarium
2ft to light, indirect
8â pot with drainage
Last watered 3 years ago
5
Best Answer
My biggest concern is probably the lighting then. My rabbitâs foot fern got bright shade outdoors all summer, including about an hour of morning sun, and seemed to do really well. Grow lights seem really bright indoors, but compared to outdoor light, theyâre really pretty dim. Iâd try to get a grow light closer to your fern if possible.
Itâs also possible that itâs being trampled a bit. I had some trouble with that with a Monstera adansonii with my crested gecko. It worked all right when she was a hatchling, but as she grew, the plant started getting crushed. The fact that the asparagus fern is still doing well makes me think that maybe trampling isnât the problem, but itâs worth considering.
One last thought: are you feeding live insects? Iâve had trouble in the past with crickets chewing on succulents in my leo enclosure. They didnât live long, but enough damage was done to kill the succulents.
Itâs also possible that itâs being trampled a bit. I had some trouble with that with a Monstera adansonii with my crested gecko. It worked all right when she was a hatchling, but as she grew, the plant started getting crushed. The fact that the asparagus fern is still doing well makes me think that maybe trampling isnât the problem, but itâs worth considering.
One last thought: are you feeding live insects? Iâve had trouble in the past with crickets chewing on succulents in my leo enclosure. They didnât live long, but enough damage was done to kill the succulents.
@ESylvanus A crocodile skink. No standing water in the bottom - an under-tank heating pad turns most of the drained water to vapor, and all the rest is absorbed by the clay balls to be slowly re-released. It does definitely dry out between watering, though the humidity remains high because croc skinks do best with ~70% humidity at all times. The lowest it really gets is 60-65. The tank is <3 feet from a shaded south-facing window, which doesnât provide much light, but there are grow lights nearby (though not overhead) that provide some indirect lighting, comparable to that of a shaded or part-shade space.
@ESylvanus I think that lightning may definitely be the problem, then. I donât think itâs trampling because heâs really quite reclusive and prefers to spend much of his time beneath objects (cork bark, water dishes, leaf litter, etc) rather than tromping around on top of the leaf litter and plants. There are is a small isopod population in the enclosure to clean up any dead plant material, droppings, and other debris, as well as springtails, but those feed only on mold and other fungi. He is fed live mealworms and other small critters outside of his enclosure. Iâll try to improve the lighting situation and see if that helps. Thanks!
@Crvidae Awesome! And Iâd love to see photos if you have any đ