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Mounting a Staghorn
Not as lascivious as it sounds. A staghorn fern (Platycerium holtummii) I had around for a while got BIG, and I also realized it needed to be properly mounted if it was going to really thrive. Plus, I'd like to see if I can get it to grow to a 75-pounder. Step 1 is was to get my hands on a staghorn fern mounting board (http://www.fernfactory.com/), which is just a simple, large piece of cedar covered in sphagnum moss (long cut), then covered in webbing, with a hole on top for hanging. I put the board in the bathtub and thoroughly saturated the board, cut a diamond-shaped hole in the center of the webbing, pushed some of the moss away to make a large cavity, carefully took the staghorn out of the container it's lived in for about a year, removed as much soil as possible, placed the fern in the hole, pointing slightly downward, spreading the sterile fronds (there were 2 new, green shield fronds as well on this specimen), then used fishing line to secure the fern to the board/moss/webbing. Then, I soaked it all again. Now, it hangs outside, under a shady balsam tree. Wish me luck!
Not as lascivious as it sounds. A staghorn fern (Platycerium holtummii) I had around for a while got BIG, and I also realized it needed to be properly mounted if it was going to really thrive. Plus, I'd like to see if I can get it to grow to a 75-pounder. Step 1 is was to get my hands on a staghorn fern mounting board (http://www.fernfactory.com/), which is just a simple, large piece of cedar covered in sphagnum moss (long cut), then covered in webbing, with a hole on top for hanging. I put the board in the bathtub and thoroughly saturated the board, cut a diamond-shaped hole in the center of the webbing, pushed some of the moss away to make a large cavity, carefully took the staghorn out of the container it's lived in for about a year, removed as much soil as possible, placed the fern in the hole, pointing slightly downward, spreading the sterile fronds (there were 2 new, green shield fronds as well on this specimen), then used fishing line to secure the fern to the board/moss/webbing. Then, I soaked it all again. Now, it hangs outside, under a shady balsam tree. Wish me luck!
