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Java Fern Plantlet Question - when do they drop off?

Sudipto

Sudipto

Member
Joined
22 Dec 2015
Messages
32
Location
Calcutta, India
I have some very healthy Java ferns and several of the leaves are sprouting new plantlets from their tips. My question is, at what stage do they drop off the mother leaf on their own? These plantlets are growing for the last two months or so. Perhaps more. One of them has at least 12 small leaves, lots of hairy roots and now a clearly recognisable rhizome - albeit very thin. It all started with the dots on the back of the leaves, then some hairy roots grew and then the new tiny leaves. Right now I can see the rhizome too.
I don't want to nip it off the leaf, thereby damaging the mother leaf. I want it to drop off on its own, because it is shading my AR Mini. I believe a gentle tug might also dislodge it from the mother leaf. I have tried but to no success. Perhaps I was a little too gentle.
Can someone with experience in this please tell me what to do? As I said, I have no intention to damage the mother leaf in any way. I can wait. It is not a desperate situation.
 
I doubt they fall off just like that, usualy the mature leaves do this and they all have a life cycle. So if the don't fall of due to physical force, the mother leaf will finaly die and melt away. Lately bought a large bunch of java ferns from a privat grower, what he had growen wass uge and he slolled me relative mature plants still attached to it's mother. He pulled them off with me watching it..

But if you are gentle you can pull 'm off without damaging the mother leaf.. I do.. :) Just be gentle..
 
Thanks a lot to both of you. Let me make provision for a new home for them and then I will harvest. But the mother leaf looks pretty healthy and in fine shape. Won't it bear a few more babies? There are lots of black dots still.
 
If a leaf is propagating young plants that doesn't mean it's at it's end of her life, i just experience the plantlets do not fall off at a particular time or age. if it does it'll take very long. I yet not grow them long enough to have an idea.. But the tank i''m growing java's in has a sump with little spare room to put plants in. I did cut off ugly looking java leaves with little plantlets on it.. And threw it into the sump and yes it just keeps propagating even the mother leaf as ugly as it is it just stays alive for a long time. With this type of propagation the little pimples on the leaf, actualy already are very tiny java ferns on it's own and will finaly grow into a bigger one. If a cut off leaf makes new ones i do not know, i guess not, but every pimple it already has will become a fern eventually. :)
 
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