Best soil for Squirrel's Foot Fern (Davallia trichomanoides)

Why squirrel's foot fern needs this mix

Squirrel's Foot Fern drinks mostly through its central cup, not its roots — so it wants a light, open, fast-draining bark mix and only a shallow pot.

• Squirrel's Foot Fern is an epiphyte: its small root system mainly clings on, while the rosette "tank" does the drinking — so the mix only needs to anchor it and breathe.
• An open bark mix lets the few roots get air and dries fast, mimicking the tree-fork or rock crevice it grows in naturally.
• Because the cup feeds it, a soggy root zone gives no benefit and only invites base rot.

For the full picture on what makes up a good mix, see our guide to the main types of soil and potting media — it explains why each ingredient above behaves the way it does.

What goes wrong with the wrong mix

The wrong soil is one of the most common reasons squirrel's foot fern struggles, and the damage often shows up weeks later as a watering problem. For this species specifically:

• Dense, water-holding compost rots squirrel's foot fern at the base where the leaves meet the soil — the rosette can look fine while the crown is already failing.
• A deep pot full of mix stays wet in the middle long after the surface dries; bromeliad roots are too shallow to ever use it.
• Garden topsoil compacts and starves the few roots of air.

Potting squirrel's foot fern deep in ordinary compost as if the roots do the feeding. Use a shallow pot of open bark mix and keep the soil only barely moist.

pH — does it matter for squirrel's foot fern?

Squirrel's Foot Fern likes a slightly acidic mix (around pH 5.0-6.0), which a bark-based blend gives naturally. Cup-water quality matters more than soil pH — use rain or filtered water.

If you want to check or adjust it, the soil pH guide walks through testing and the safe ways to nudge a mix more acidic or more alkaline.

DIY mix vs a bagged one

A bagged epiphytic or orchid mix works well for squirrel's foot fern with a little extra perlite. The DIY ratio above is easy and cheap if you already keep orchids.

Drainage and the pot

A shallow, well-drained pot is ideal — the rootball should never sit in water. Keep the central cup topped up instead; that is how the plant actually drinks.

Squirrel's Foot Fern rarely needs repotting — it flowers once then produces pups. Move pups to fresh bark mix; bark breakdown is slow enough that the parent rarely needs it. When the time comes, our repotting guide for squirrel's foot fern covers the timing and technique step by step.

Squirrel's Foot Fern soil — frequently asked questions

Keep reading

• Squirrel's Foot Fern care — the full brief (light, water, humidity, problems, pet safety)
• How often to water squirrel's foot fern — the schedule the mix feeds into
• Repotting squirrel's foot fern — when and how to refresh the mix
• Soil pH guide — test it and adjust it safely
• Root rot — how the wrong soil starts it, and how to save the plant
• Overwatered plant — signs and recovery
• Why is my plant wilting? Wet vs dry diagnosis
• Best soil for cat's jaws
• Best soil for karas mountains living stones
• Best soil for optic living stones
• All 11687 soil and potting-mix guides in the Growli library