Detailed care and propagation methods for Platycerium, commonly known as stag's horn fern, including daily maintenance techniques.

How to care for PlatyceriumToday's focus is on how to care for Platycerium and detailed techniques for its daily maintenance and propagation methods. Next, the site editor will introduce to the netizens.Platycerium is a tropical plant that can be grown as a potted indoor plant, hung in baskets, or even attached directly to trees, becoming an epiphytic plant. Its leaves resemble deer antlers, which is how it got its name.I. The Nutritional and Spore Leaves of PlatyceriumThe structure of Platycerium is very simple. It has two completely different types of leaves. The long, hanging ones are its spore leaves, which produce spores on the back of the leaves. Platycerium relies on these spores for propagation (a few varieties may grow some side shoots).The nutritional leaves at the base of the Platycerium plant are usually round or shield-shaped. Their function is to absorb nutrients and moisture, capturing the nutrients from fallen leaves or dead branches, and preventing waterlogging at the roots.II. Maintenance Introduction1. Light and TemperatureMost Platycerium can tolerate slightly abundant sunlight, but they prefer to be kept in a position with scattered light, especially during the hot summer. More than 3-5 hours of scattered light per day is enough for them to grow well.Their optimal growth temperature is between 18-25 degrees Celsius. If the temperature drops below 7 degrees Celsius, some varieties can be frostbitten. Stronger varieties can tolerate temperatures as low as 4 degrees Celsius. To ensure that potted Platycerium can safely survive the winter each year, it is best to maintain a temperature above 10 degrees Celsius.2. Water and HumidityPlatycerium is a typical epiphytic plant. Their roots originally grow on the surface of wood, which is why fixing Platycerium on a wooden board and growing them can also thrive. They absorb moisture through their leaves, and their roots primarily serve to anchor the plant.When watering Platycerium, it mainly depends on the environment, such as light and temperature. If the ventilation is good, you can frequently mist the plant.If the ventilation is poor and the leaves are often wet, they can easily rot. If the soil in which Platycerium is planted is too moist, it can easily cause root rot. This must be handled properly. If the growing medium is dry, you can water it. During hot and dry seasons, you can water it frequently, mainly on the nutritional leaves.3. SoilAs mentioned earlier, Platycerium prefers to grow on the surface of wood, so it is usually planted in substrates like moss or particularly breathable coarse coconut shell or moss.A relatively safe soil mixture is to use half coarse coconut shell and half moss. This should generally not be a problem. Wrap the bottom of its root disk, which can be fixed on a wooden board, planted in a breathable container, or even directly attached to a tree trunk.4. FertilizationFertilizing Platycerium must be done with caution as it has a low tolerance for fertilizer. Usually, in warm weather, such as temperatures between 18-27 degrees Celsius, you can supplement fertilizer every 1-2 months. The concentration of the fertilizer should be reduced to 1/4-1/5 of the usual concentration, using a general-purpose fertilizer, such as the common "Flower More 1," diluted 5000 to 7000 times with water.At the end of autumn and during winter, when the temperature is low, below 16 degrees Celsius, fertilization should be stopped, and watering should be controlled appropriately. If your Platycerium plant is very small, you should also control fertilization, supplementing once every half a year to a year with a lower concentration of fertilizer.If you are growing Platycerium under the shade of trees, its nutritional leaves can obtain organic matter from fallen leaves on the trees, and it can grow well without fertilization.III. Propagation1. Spore PropagationThe brown part is the spore of Platycerium.Platycerium still relies on spores for propagation. You can regularly check the leaves of Platycerium. Its spores are all on the back of healthy old leaves. Look for the older spore leaves. If the leaves start to change color and become dull, you can check if there are spores on the back of the leaves and cut off the leaves with spores.