Tip #10: Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)
Boston ferns bring soft, graceful texture and lush greenery to living rooms and sheltered porches. While ferns prefer consistent soil moisture and suffer when dried out, they flourish when their dense, fibrous root systems pack tightly inside their pots. Placing a small fern inside a large pot leaves wet, untouched soil pockets that choke delicate root hairs, leading to brown frond tips, leaf shed, and eventual plant decay.
A compact pot allows you to water your Boston fern deeply without leaving its core roots submerged in stagnant moisture. Repot your fern only when you observe that water runs straight through the container without soaking in, or when you find yourself watering the plant twice daily to prevent fronds from drooping. When repotting becomes necessary, step up by no more than 1 to 2 inches in pot diameter to preserve the compact root ball and maintain steady frond growth year after year.
