Hi Is this the same as M. steelei?? Have no experience at propagating but this has quickly become one of my favorite ferns!!! I grow several other Microrum species but pale when compared to this species . Hope you get some good answers I would love to expand the numbers . Noticed you are in Greece do you have any culture problems?? So far I've had none at all. gary
Hi I've had mine around two years now planted in long fibered sphagnum in a six inch pot growing under heliconia in the shadehouse Has flourished in that situation . has been much less a problem than the aquatic species in the family, outdoors. have noted there is great change by the amount of light bighter produces much greener fronds while shady produces the gorgeous metallic blue color. They have become very common at local plant sales so I figure somebody is propagating them in large numbers. I was told by the vendor that steelei has a much deeper more metallic blue than thailandicum. Find they are synonyms on the net?? I'm always afraid of trying spores because the shadehouse gets overun with several species though none of the Microsorum genus. gary
Hi Curious if you grow other species of the genus?? I grow M.pteropus,musifoliam and now thailandicum. amazing as to how differnt the conditions they grow in and fun experimenting with alternative culture methods. Growing pteropus semi'terrestial rather than aquatic . Sure didn't like it at first but seems to have adapted. Don't find many fern growers of this genus for some reason particularly the thailandicum. gary
I do pretty much the same process for all fern spores, they're pretty easy.
- dry the spores and separate from fronds - screen peat moss-based potting soil (or just mix screened peatmoss and sand), to get out long fibers and chunks. - pour boiling water through the soil mix (I skip this step when I use pre-pasteurized potting soils). - drain and cool soil mix - make a flat thin layer (1-2cm deep) of the mix in a shallow container. - sprinkle the spores thinly over the surface, and mist lightly with clean water. - close the container with a clear plastic lid, or it can be covered with clear food wrap. - place somewhere that gets bright light but not direct sun. - keep moist, and wait.
I try to ignore them for a month or two, so I don't get too impatient with them.
First, green moss or liverwort looking things will grow over the surface, and sometime later (usually a few months, sometimes longer) small ferns will grow from those. Once they are big enough that you are comfortable picking them out, they can be separated and potted up.
I do not add limestone when starting fern spores, even the ones that often grow on limestone in the wild. It probably makes no difference to this one.
I have also used ground up dried sphagnum (not peat). It's especially important to boil that, or the moss can begin growing and crowd out the tiny fern prothallia.
Try to pot the baby ferns up in small batches, leaving the rest undisturbed in their original container. They will last a long time, just not grow much, if left as they are. They can be very sensitive for a while after they are transplanted, and might die. It's good to have more in case you lose a batch.
Is there someone who has spores/sori of Microsorum thailandicum who would be willing to share/sell?? I have raised many different varieties of ferns but not this one...hopefully someone has some available..thanks, Judy S
I may have some Judy. I'll check in the morning. I know the 2 pots of them I brought to the raffle last month had spore. I've found them kinda fussy to grow outdoors in my shadehouse/greenhouse.
Hi Since this has become my favorite fern thought I'd throw in a couple of thoughts. Only have one and has never produced spores but has undergone a change in growth habit. Has be come very short and mat like spreading out rather than growing up, has lost the intense metallic color. Still using long fibered sphag as a media. in fact it's still in the same location when I first got. Notice this is native to Thailand but is it lowland or high altitude.? have found it to be both cold and heat tolerant but sure appreciates high humidity. Going to put it in my large terrarium this spring just to see what happens . Have noted it doesn't tolerate bright light very well and seems best in dense shade. gary
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