Crispy Wave, the oxygen bomb your house needs!

I've been a little infatuated with tiny plants lately. It started in spring when I was buying some bedding plants and the nursery had an assortment of 'miniature' plants. I just had to buy a crispy wave plant and a mini purple cyclamen! 

Of course I know that many of these 'mini' plants are going to grow up to be full size, but since the crispy wave aka birds nest fern is excellent at purifying the air and adding oxygen to it, I was willing to take that chance!

One of the things that attracted me to this plant was that it only needs filtered light not direct light, so setting it a few feet back from the window would be perfect! Since I was looking for a small plant for on the coffee table this seemed like a good fit. 

I bought the little plant and took it home. It was to replace a succulent that had been left outside one cold night.

You see, the husband tries to take care of my plants and he had taken that one outside on a sunny spring day only to forget it out there overnight. By replacing it with a plant that does not need direct light, he wouldn't be tempted to take it outside and (hopefully) this one would live a good deal longer!

That might mistake proof this plant, but one of the main reasons I chose this plant was because it said right on the tag 'The Natural Air Purifier'. While all plants help improve air quality, this sounded like it was going to do a better job than usual, plus it is known to live quite long for a potted plant. Sounds perfect!

I should probably mention now that though I purchased a plant with a tag that says Crispy Wave on it, it is the name given to it by the company that sells the plant. 

I'm not sure exactly how they 'developed' the crispy wave fern but as far as I found from their website, it is actually a type of Asplenium Nidus fern that was found with these unique waves. 

It's also known as a bird's-nest fern, but the crispy wave branded plants tend to be a little more wavy and each leaf tends to have some curl to it. 

Air cleaning super plant

It's all those waves in the leaves that give this little plant it's air cleaning super powers. You see, according to NASA's air purifying plant study, the surface area is the number one factor in determining a plant's oxygen producing capabilities and all those bends and the texture of the fronds create a LOT of surface area.

The fronds' thickness and rigidity allow the Crispy Wave to filter harmful particles such as formaldehyde from the air to a higher degree.

It's just a bonus that this super air cleaning plant happens to be pet safe also.

Caring for the crispy wave plant

The crispy wave is native to tropical rain forests of Asia, Africa, Australia and parts of Hawaii. This plant grows in lightly wooded areas where it gets very little direct sunlight. For optimum plant health, you'll want to attempt to mimic these ideal conditions.  

When re-potting your plant, use regular potting soil or a tropical soil with good aeration. You can add extra perlite for good drainage and aeration. Make sure the pot you chose has adequate drainage holes.

This plant enjoys a room temperature between 60-90. It prefers high humidity and evenly moist soil. Do not allow soil to dry out completely. However, it does not like to be over watered or allowed to sit in water. 

Make sure you place the plant back a bit from windows so it gets indirect light. Rotate often if it only gets light on one side, to insure the plant grows evenly

Re-pot once the roots fill the current pot, moving it up to the next size pot. This plants size is almost limitless. I've found them in all different sizes in the stores recently and they have the potential to grow huge! 

You can fertilize the crispy wave plant about once a month during the growing season. Skip the fertilizer in winter. I use a low strength compost tea and my plant seems to like it. Thought the official website recommends a 20-20-20 liquid all purpose fertilizer diluted to half strength.

You'll know if the care you give the plant is lacking. It will show you by the leaves becoming pale, they could get sunburn marks, or turn yellow in less than ideal conditions. If you see these signs, evaluate your plants care to determine what could be wrong.

Of course if you see vigorous growth and the leaves are a vibrant green then the plant is loving the care you give it!

Where to buy the Crispy Wave

I bought my plant in a small garden center in Pennsylvania, but I've seen seen them in big box store Meijer and grocery store Kroger in Michigan. They can also be ordered from the company I linked up above. 

As you can see in the picture below, these ones are much larger than the one I bought! I've seen them available in various sizes.

With good care this plant will last for years, growing ever larger with each passing year! How big can your crispy wave plant grow?

Related reading: Want more information on houseplants? Check out this collection of articles on indoor gardening.

~L

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