# Staghorn fern



## d-prime (Sep 29, 2008)

I am in the process of building my azureus vivarium (18x18x24 tall exo terra) and wondered if it would be possible to mount a staghorn fern on the background. They are epiphyts so it might work. Does anyone know ferns that attach themselves like a brom?


----------



## crw.dft (Oct 14, 2008)

the only problem that i see with the staghorn in that application is the fact that they get absolutely gigantic. i have seen them with leaves about 4 feet long and my dad has one now that's about 2 feet in diameter, so i would think they would just be too big.


----------



## Mywebbedtoes (Jul 2, 2007)

Yeah, cool but huge. Here are some shots I took at the Fair this year. These are 3-5' acorss probably.


----------



## d-prime (Sep 29, 2008)

Were those from mwff? Nice pics, too bad... Any other alternatives?


----------



## Mywebbedtoes (Jul 2, 2007)

No, local fair. Kangaroo ferns might be a good choice.


----------



## harrywitmore (Feb 9, 2004)

It would be helpful to know the dimensions of your setup. There are may epiphytic ferns that mount nicely. They are hard to find but Charles Alford list them quite often. Drynaia bonii is a nice alternative. It doesn't get as huge as many other Drynaria. The are small cultivars of Asplenium that would also work. Microsorum muscifolia grew like crazy in a terrarium I had but the fronds can get about 2' long. So, you can see the size is important.


----------



## d-prime (Sep 29, 2008)

its the 18 x 18 x 24 tall exo terra


----------



## harrywitmore (Feb 9, 2004)

That's pretty small. You may want to try and find one of the smaller Asplenium nidus cultivars. While the grow in a circular manner in a ot it would adapt to a plaque type mount. Drynaria bonii may also work but finding it will be the problem.


----------



## melissa68 (Feb 16, 2004)

Short term anything is possible. Those things get big & very heavy - so I don't know if I would put something in there you know when mature will be bigger than the tank.

Anyone know what their growth rates are like?


----------



## back2eight (Dec 19, 2005)

If you put any plant in a tank when it is a baby, chances are the growth will be stunted, so it is probably not going to get as big as it would if given proper light conditions. That said, a staghorn does get big. Have you thought about a rabbit's foot fern?


----------



## Kevin1234 (Oct 12, 2008)

If you can find one small enough to start with......I would say give it a try. but other than that rabbits foot fern is good like stated above.


----------



## Otis (Apr 16, 2006)

Lemon button ferns stay pretty small, and so do button ferns. Stags get huge, but I have been able to keep them small in a few of my tanks by taking off any new growth.


----------

