Scientific Name:
Nephrolepis exaltata
Pronunciation:
nef-roh-LEP-iss eks-all-TAY-tuh
Common Name:
Boston fern
Family Name:
Nephrolepidaceae
Plant Type:
Fern, Indoor foliage plant
Key ID Features:
Arching habit with weeping form; fronds sword-shaped fronds, pinnae deltoid, and shallow toothed; sori with indusia along margins on underside of pinnae.
Habit:
Arching, Upright
Form:
Mounded, Weeping
Texture:
Medium - fine
Mature Height:
0.7 - 1.3m
Mature Spread:
1.5 - 2.0m
Origin:
Africa, Caribbean Island, Central America, Mexico, South America, South Asia / India
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 10: (-1 to 4 °C)
Exposure:
Filtered shade, Deep shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
High
Landscape Uses:
Hanging basket, Indoor plant
Additional Info:
Google. Cultivars shown may include N. 'Bostoniensis'.
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Compound, Fern-like
Arrangement:
Basal
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Compound Leaf:
Even-pinnate
Shapes:
Linear
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Oblique (uneven)
Margins:
Serrate, Undulate (wavy)
Inflorescence Type:
Flower Morphology:
Colour (petals):
No flowers
Flower Time at Peak:
Fruit Type:
Sporangium (spores)
Fruit Colour:
Brown, Black
Fruiting Time:
Bark or Stem Colour:
Additional Info:
no above ground stem
Organ Modifications:
Rhizomes, Runners (or stolons), Twining stems
Propagation:
Division - below ground parts, Tissue culture
Optimal Temp.:
Medium
Light Level:
Low
Maintenance:
Medium
Pest Susceptibility:
Mites, Root rot, Scale insects
