Davallia griffithiana (Rabbit's Foot Fern) Houseplant Care - 236 of 365
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- One of the most forgiving ferns for an indoor environment has to be in the genus Davallia, which are the rabbit's foot fern. I highlight mine in #236 of "365 Days of Plants".
In this video I'll discuss where it is originally native to, where I'm growing it in my home, and basics like light, watering and fertilizing.
You can check out more of these videos here and on my IGTV @homesteadbrooklyn.
Featured plant:
Davaillia griffithiana
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Homestead Brooklyn’s "Plant One On Me" is a series on indoor and outdoor gardening, houseplant home tours, greenhouse and botanic garden field trips, interviews, travelogues, and more. Write your questions and suggestions in the comments below the videos, on Instagram @homesteadbrooklyn #PlantOneOnMe, or Facebook @summerrayneoakes and @homesteadbrooklyn.
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Mine got infested by tiny white flies, so I put it out on the balcony, to isolate it from my other plants, while I figured out what to do about the flies...and then Covid happened and I forgot all about the fern and it got left outside all through the British Winter! The green leaves all died away and then I noticed that in Spring, new shoots were coming out of all the rabbit's feet and there were dozens of ladybirds all over it! The lady birds ate all the bugs, so by the time I brought the pot back inside, its was completely clear. I re-potted it, just to show it some love and it has bloomed! More foliage than it had before and really healthy looking...and zero bugs! So yes, it has proven itself to be extremely resilient! Left outside, with only rainfall (which is plentiful in England) and survived freezing conditions all through the Winter. Oh and by the way, I live on the 9th floor, across the road from the beach. So apart from the winter storms, the poor little fern also dealt with salty sea spray!
I fell IN LOVE with rabbit ferns. I found one the other day at the local houseplant shop and i’m so excited.
I just got mine today. I am beyond excited to watch it grow.
I have been growing Davallia fejeensis for the past few years. It is currently in an eight inch net pot with long fiber sphagnum and perlite. It has been moved back and forth between a south facing window that gets about 6 hours of direct light and a shelf under blue-red LEDs. It gets a slight red tint to its new fronds in direct light, but does well in both light conditions. It grows fast in my conditions and does not seem to get set back by environmental changes or repotting. I have had no pest issues since I got it. It is a really nice easy fern!
I battled scale on my Rabbit's Foot Fern for 2 years and I'm proud to share that I've won! It's been a year and it hasn't returned. I just kept using Safer's horticultural spray.
Hi there, it’s not a scale, it’s spores. It’s part of the plant ! Don’t take it off! The plant is propagation through spores!
I bought my rabbit's foot fern from Walmart, no brown scale. It's been thriving in my bathroom for over a year now.
Does your bathroom have a window?..I bought one yesterday...I'd like it in my bathroom but I'm not sure if it wud survive with out a window
I have around 40 house plants now and these ferns are the easiest and most low tolerant for me. I do have other low light plants but these actually grow and look great rather than just tolerate low light
I love this plant! When the light shines through it looks magical
"Probably the easier ferns to take care of."
Me watching because I'm killing mine.
Update: It died.
same same
Same I’m still hoping to keep it alive hahaha
Dude mine is dying too! I have it near a humidifier rn and water it quite often, but the leaves are still drying out?? Maybe over watering??
@@MarianneBarrientez Yeah, they don't need near as much water as you would think. Maybe, because of it's fuzzy rhizomes? I often let mine go dry.
I bust out laughing!!!! This comment is MEEEEEEE af xDD bahahaahahaa! Mine is shriveling RIGHT NOW AS I TYPE TT whyyyyy ( I think it's the water??)
I live in Saskatchewan, Canada and have two of these. One is huge and is about 30 years old (I inherited it from my Grandma) and the other one I've had for 2 years. Neither of them have had brown scale that I'm aware of, of course I had to run and check right away lol. I'm growing them about a foot and a half away from an easy facing window and they are loving life. These are so easy and so rewarding to grow. I absolutely love these plants.
Oooh I'd love to see a photo of your huge one!!
I have had my rabbits foot fern for about two years now (?) and I absolutely love her! I found little brown scale on her and got a treatment from my local small business nursery and it didn't effect her too much! She is flourishing, even during winter and being outside(zone9),even with a major trim... Comforting to know that I wasn't the only one with a weird infestation on just that one plant lol
Would you mind sharing the name of the product you got to kill the bugs? I am having issues with this big time! Thanks!
I used one in an outdoor, very shady moist pot for one of my clients last summer. The plant looked so good when it was time to dismantle the arrangement, that I dug the plant up and brought it home. The only pot I had at the time that fit the root ball was a pot without drainage. I'm careful with watering and it seems to be doing very well... thank you for your lovely video.
This plant is on my want list. The furry 'legs' don't bother me at all. I'm spider-friendly LOL. I do have the Kangaroo Paw fern which has gorgeous blue-green leaves and I find it very easy to care for and not demanding at all. It's lovely to look at too.
i love rabbits foot fern. i got mine at the grocery store and shes grown so much. im about to get 5 cuttings from her. shes doing so much better than any other fern ive had
I received a basket of propagated babies from a friend. Her mama plant is to die for! I just got it late last summer so I am looking forward to spring to come to watch how it grows for me. Nice to know it isn't real finicky. I see some new feet developing so I am hoping it will become like its amazing Mama!
I really loved this video Summer. I love Davallias, one of the easiest ferns to grow in my opinion :)
I had my rabbit's foot fern for about a month, I love it so far.
I do have this plant and l love it too. Mine constantly gets yellowish/brown fronds. I always thought it was because l do not water it frequently enough, but now l have to take a closer look. I wouldn't be surprised if it had scale. I have a tree fern Dicksonia that has been infested with scale. Rabbits foot fern is an easy fern, its not fussy. I have it growing in a terracotta pot. I also have it growing inside my large terrarium. The hairy feet started to burrow into the substrate and all the way down to the clay pebbles, it looks so cool!
I’m growing one and kind of forgot about it and left it outside and we’ve had temps at night in the 30’s and still growing. But I have taken it inside. Very strong grower. Thank you for the info on propagating it.
Mine is eight years old and huge. I love it and hopefully just saved it from mealybugs. I am ordering green lace wings for the first time thanks to you. I don't have scale on my rabbit foots but on a new blue bears claw fern and Philodendron Hope, "Selloum"I just teated myself to. I didn't pay attention when purchasing them and they are infested with scale. I am so thankful for you and really looking forward to trying the lace wings🙏💖🙇♀️
i just love her background wall..unique color that compliments every plant.. 😍
I’m in Australia and have one of these and we are coming from winter and now in to spring, and I’ve just noticed mine has this scale. I’ve been picking it off with my fingers and watching it.....must say it still looks good and seems very resilient
Just spray with week white oil
I came to UA-cam searching for fern care because I have several that I bought last summer & some aren’t doing so well including this one. THANKS for this video. I am over watering & need to move it! Your videos are GREAT!!
I have had my rabbit's foot fern for 4 years now, never seen the scale. It's my favorite plant, beautiful, no fuss, and I get so many compliments on it.
Oh gosh, mine has been almost dead I Thought it was a non beginner friendly plant. Funny enough, people say that Asplenium nidus (birds nest fern) is difficult to keep in the home, but I have 4 that have been absolutely thriving for maybe 8-10 months!! Even though I don’t have a humidifier and don’t know how to use fertilizer or plant food yet. My rabbits foot fern came with one or two little brown scales but I took them off as soon as I got it and they never came back. However it has been losing fronds and is sooooo sparse now and the fronds that are left have brown wilted sections of them yet green sections all on the same frond. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong I tried watering less watering more and less light more light..
I have loved the look of beautiful feathery ferns my whole life. Even as a little kid I had an asparagus fern (the lacy feathery frilly frond-like version, Asparagus plumosa), that just pop up in my backyard one day and I cared for it so that it wouldn’t die I kept it alive for years out there!! I loved that thing and I’ve been wanting one ever since I started houseplants, I just haven’t found one of that variety yet. But it doesn’t seem like dainty ferns do well in my home! I had 2 maiden hairs die on me too as well as a local native Hawaiian fern that looks similar to a Boston but much skinnier fronds / shorter lobes on the fronds). I think I’m going to have to just get a whole bunch more asplenium nidus varieties and make that my new thing!
Thanks for the info. I’m a complete noob and got rabbit feet fern cause I loved the look. And your info is very helpful for me to come out of plant killer phase
I absolutely adore my rabbit's foot fern! I myself have never had any issues with little Brown scale knock on wood lol I have noticed though that my plant grows very quickly and easily and is easier to care for than my other friends just like you mentioned
Summer thanks for doing this video, I love this plant.
Great video, thanks. I'm trying them in one of those pots made from moss. It's doing very well
I am in Zimbabwe and I have 5 large rabbits foot, and I just got a white rabbits foot today, with the tiny leaves. So excited. No no brown scale yet. Mealies have affected my maidenhair and I sprayed them.
Beautiful fern, but I have not tried growing any of these. Maybe this coming year I will be brave and give it a try. Thanks Summer I am loving this series, see you tomorrow.
I just got my rabbit's foot fern and transferred it into LECA.. so far so good. I got mines from kroger and there's no scale on it. Praying that it does well!!
I hope mine will look as good as yours one day!☺️ I haven’t had brown scale and thanks for the watering tip!
Just bought my first rabbit’s foot fern at Home Depot and love its fronds and fuzzy ‘feet’. Got rid of brown scale on an ivy plant by spraying with Castille soap/water solution. Worth a try
What a classic. I have good luck with this plant. Can become large in a few years. This fern is easier than others... I will say that. Nice pot by the way. Have you ever tried wetting a q-tip with alcohol and wiping over the insects. Works on mealy bugs too.
I just added a clip grow light to mine, which has exploded in growth! It is the easiest plant I have! It has been in the same pot for 4 years. The fuzzy legs are all over, but the small pot does not bother it!
I just brought one I have terrible luck with ferns this video helps and I'm a bit more confident about trying
Thanks so much for this video. I got my hands on a rabbit foot fern last month, your video helped me have the confidence I can keep it happy and so far it is doing well. Is there a chance you could share where to get those hanging planters?
Just brought one yesterday from the clearance aisle at Lowe's only paid a dollar it's small but I love getting my plants in the Clarence aisle they're always so cheap and they just need some tlc and you end up with a beautiful plant
Good morning I Summer!! Thank you for this video!! I purchased this fern at Whole Foods back in May of this year not knowing it was a rabbit's foot fern although, I've wanted one for some time lol so I lucked out!! I haven't repotted it yet because I'm just so afraid of killing it but I do have it under a grow light. I water it 1-2 times a week because it dries out fast, again I haven't repotted it but I plan to today!! Also, I know what they say about misting but I mist mine once in the morning daily because I have a fan in my kitchen always circulating air!! So far it's grown new fronds and now it's growing even more new curly headed baby fronds so lol!! I really hope it lives for a long time!🌱💖🥰
I’ve had one for almost a year. Doing great,,,,I love it
This is my favorite fern. You are right about it being scary,; when my daughter was little she was so afraid of the fuzzy rhizomes that I had to give the plant away!!
We have one! Got it from Home Depot, and it doesn't have any brown scale.
I thought I accidentally killed it with over-watering, because most of the stalks turned brown and fell out.
Then, the baby sprouts came back out and it's thriving again! Lesson learned though, these only need moderate water
I got a very small $3 one of these early this year and now it's the size of one you'd pay $20 for!! I love it. I also got a lemon button at the same time and it's doing pretty well too, definitely tons bigger than it used to be!
And it's funny, they're right up against my window in Michigan and I can hardly reach them to water them but they seem fine? I also have a rosy maidenhair a shelf up that gets water around once a week and it's LOVING it... even though it gets quite cold and dry, which maidenhair ferns typically hate
(it's an east window)
Would neem work on the brown scale? I can't really reach mine to really check it out right now but I'd like to know if there's a way to get it besides by hand
I also rarely fertilize and many of my plants (including succulents) don't have drainage but they're doing pretty well lol
I have 2 in medium light with a glass punch bowl on top on my days I work . Soil stay s somewhat damp not moist before I water again. I don't see any scale on them but I've only had for a month . Thank you Summer!
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. I recently purchased a rabbits foot fern and mistook it for a Boston fern. I'm still searching for the perfect spot for it. It doesn't seem to like my SE window. I noticed the leaves drying out and dying. I have been misting it 2x a day every day. But now I've moved it further away from the window and about halfway into the room and it's under a humidifier now. I hope it makes it 😭
I've always loved the rabbit foot fern! I had one a couple years ago. Unfortunately it didn't do well and I had to get rid of it. I might have been giving it too much light and/or water. After watching your video, I'm going to buy another and give it a go.
I have an austral gem and kangaroo paw that are doing well. They seem to be more resilient compared to some other ferns. Thank you for your video!
This video is going to help me alot. Thanks!!
I’ve had one for two years. Put it in my bathroom and I think I overwatered it. All the green turned brown and fell off. I was so sad. So I took it out onto my staircase with my other plants and never brought myself to throw it out. I think I didn’t water it for months and then all of a sudden I saw new fiddle heads growing 😅 now it’s in my bathroom again and doing great. I don’t water too often.
I have a few ferns that I am actually putting into a bioactive. White Rabbit's Foot Fern is definitely doing alright. But started a light green in the middle. So I wanted to check out your video. I'm so worried I will kill these plants, but I have my fingers crossed!
another awesome video/content
I have a rabbits foot fern hanging in my bathroom window. I don't see them very often here in New hampshire but I lucked out and found one. Of course i had to check mine for brown scale....I didn't find any!
Thank you for making this video. There's so little videos out there on the tried and tested methods of fern care.
I have 2 of them and they both have those brown scales and it hasn’t spread through my plants and I love it so much and was kinda scared about the scale but the video you’ve made had decrease my worry ness of the plant
They are easy but I also care for the much finicky ones as well. They are all thriving well. I have to check mine for brown scale because I have never heard of this before until today. Thanks.
Yes, my r-f fern died of pests as well.
It was just a pest magnet.
Mine had terrible outbreak of aphids if I remember that right.
I have 4- 8" pots and I LOVE them.
It's roots look awesome u can believe it, I'll show u tomorrow
Looks more like tarantula legs than rabbit’s feet. 😅 Humorless scientists must’ve named it. Love your videos as always! ❤️
I’ve been battling scale with my too! It’s the only plant in my over 70 plants collection that has scale, but fortunately it hasn’t spread or kill this plant. Like you said it just isn’t growing as vigorously.
Looking forward to growing rabbit's foot fern!
I love this plant 😍
My fern has been losing a lot of leaves for a few months. Turning partially brown but some green still on the frond. Then just drop off. I was thinking of trying a root trim and repot.
One of the best examples of a plant's sick sense of humor is once you see a gigantic one of these just sitting up on a tree in the blazing tropical sun of Fiji! Fussy ferns.🤣 Brown scale loves these little ferns. Only constant humidity keeps them at bay. If you have this plant and it gets the tiniest bit parched brown scale will descend. The same can be said for Tapeworm Plant/Ribbon Bush which comes from the same neck of the woods. Unless you are extremely diligent you will get brown scale.
I bought my rabbit foot ferns from Walmart. I put 2 in one pot. No brown scale so far.
They are in my bedroom.
I am from Bengaluru, India. I was looking for care videos on Rabbit's foot fern. It got delivered yesterday. And I think it was re-potted for transportation, so the fern is horizontal. I was not sure if I had to re-pot it what I was supposed to do, but seeing your second pot was a confirmation that they can grow in different angles. There's one yellowed fiddle, not sure if it was coz it was under-watered or over-watered. I really hope I dont kill it, she's beautiful
I was at the US National Botanical Gardens this winter and saw a palm COVERED in scale in their greenhouse. I got so itchy and almost had to stop everything and scrape them off.
Hmm. No scale on mine. Picked it up from my local greenhouse over the weekend. I love the little "feet"; it reminds me of my real bunnies' feet. :)
Thank you Miss Summer.💚🙃
Yes! mine keep getting scale and losing fronds so they always look sparse and not at all beautiful like yours. I am so frustrated that everyone else seems to be able to grow these but me. I love them can you please help me to know how to more easily get rid of the bugs without having to study each stem and wipe them off individually? Can I dip the leaves in water mixed with alcohol or neem oil maybe? Thank you!
Been on my wish lust and a friend sent me a piece got to see if i can find a vid with a potting of a clipping so i can see how to plant it. But you gave me an understanding of tjis plant thanks
I am looking for information on when to re-pot into a larger pot. Mine has many rhizomes (?) all down the sides of its 5" pot & the baby plants on the rhizomes are drying up. I discarded one Rabbit's Foot Fern, because the scale insects spread to my Sago Palm & were killing it. I just discarded an old hoya, because it kept being attacked by scale.
Just been given a really sad looking rabbits foot fern. I was told is was dormant. Thanks for the tips, I will be moving it further away from my sunny kitchen window. Do you must them or just water directly on the soil? Thanks
I always love your videos, you have so much knowledge. Can you please do a propagation video of this fern? If you have already, can you please send me the link? Thank you so much
Soil recommendations?
I never heard of scale oh my god that’s scary I was looking at my plant while you were talking about it!! I hate bugs and I got mine from lowes where a lot of them are outdoors with the bugs 😫
This is why plants are so confusing to me... I have one rabbit's foot fern directly in a south facing window and I forget to water it all of the time and it's doing awesome. I have another one in a north/east facing window that gets watered regularly (not over watered) and while it's not doing bad it's also is not thriving like the other one. It's confusing because according to your tips it should be the other way around lol
My rabbits foot plant doesn’t have any pest but I think I over water some en I saw another channel that says it loved humidity and to end of water! I’m going to back of the watering a little! I’m going to listen to miss Rayne lol
I have a few RF came free from wind. I cultivate for a few small pots. They r shiny green and lively. Easy grow and feeding them with 222 seaweed fertilizer.
Hi! I just purchased A rabbit's foot firm and it's such a great condition my question to you is will it grow well in a sky lit area how my kitchen has skylights in it and I was thinking I may put it up on top of a kitchen cabinet but I don't want it to get too much light please let me know what you think.
Mines are also always with brown scale! Thanks for sharing
Hi, got my plant in spring. It was thriving during summer.
Now its autmn, and the light is reduced and the heater runs during day. It sits a bit more than a meter above/near the heater.
Since 3-4 weeks it started loosing lots of leafes and browning/drying leafes. I dont know what to do. I water it weekly enough and fertilized it. Maybe its the dry air or its the fertilizer or over water or less light.
Another reason could be the window. I open it few times a day to let fresh air in and the plant is right next to it. Outside its between 5-10°C and inside around 20°C. Perhaps the cold air flow is stressing it out?😢
I was told to only use filtered water . Mine looks very sparce .
I was just about to buy one of these, when a peperomia rosso caught my eye for Christmas so I bought that instead. I will probably get this after the new year because I love ferns, but I need an easy one.
I loveee my little rabbit foot fern, they're the best. Mine actually has none of those small brown scales you were talking about, thankfully. Mines in a clear bubble glass pot right now but I want to move it into an open terrarium with some wild missed, any tips on that? I'm new to the channel so I'm sorry if you've already answered this
No pest. Looks great, have had it for 6 months, got it from a box store in TX.
I have a gut feeling that it is not brown scale but spores. Ferns have spores underneath of their leaves in little brown pouches that look like brown scales.
I’m not sure if the scale is coming from growers. I’ve had a staghorn fern for 3 years that never got scale until we moved from Texas to NC this year. It’s not a terrible outbreak and I stay on top of it, but they never quite go away entirely. Maybe they found the plant when we had it hanging outside in NC (it’s a wooded area).
I got a smallish one, it’s not growing, it’s just kind of surviving. It’s gotten a couple of white tips then brown, and it’s never grown any rhizomes which to me, are the coolest looking part of the plant. It’s away from a window, in a not-too bright location, and I water when it’s mostly dry. Any tips on how to encourage it to grow?
Is it scale insect or are those the spores of the fern? I have a whole patch of these outside and I always assumed they were spores as with all other fern
species.
Theres a bunch of these on a tree where I live and I used to have gigantic ones but they all ended up drying up
Huh! I just cleaned a massive popln of (now i know) little brown scale off my fern next to my rabbit foot fern. And hadnt cross contaminated at all. My other fern certainly didnt have it when i got it a year ago - here in southern Australia.
Hi dear, I had a kangaroo paw and it had those brown scales all of the stem all on the plant. I tried getting them off to come back I put it in quarantine but itself cuz I didn't want it to catch my other plants. Yesterday I just cut all the leaves off I cut it all the way down and I'm going to see does it still come back with the brown scales that's the only plan I have like that hard to get rid of.Mama Long Greenville Tx 😘😇
I have one. Can you grow these guys in a terrarium or mounted?
Great....thanks for information
I just got two rabbit’s foot ferns from Lowe’s. Poor things were in the clearance shelf ☹️ They looked prettier dehydrated and crispy
I have a rabbits foot its doing well no issues
I have no brown scale on mine. I have it in good light but I keep the sun off of it. It's getting some brown tips and I can't figure out what is wrong. It gets watered once a week because it's in a rather large pot. The soil feels damp to the touch and it hasn't been watered in exactly one week. What could it possibly want I wonder? It is also well drained.
I have a 80 lb Rabbit foot fern
In my country malaysia almost same pattern like rabbit foot but it is much smaller and called"squirrel foot fern"