One species · 8 varieties
Java fern varieties
Leptochilus pteropus
Every java fern is the same Southeast Asian fern, long sold as Microsorum pteropus and now placed in Leptochilus. The named varieties are leaf-shape selections of that one species, and they all run on the classic recipe: tie the rhizome to hardscape, give it low light, and leave it alone.
Pick a variety
Java fern
the standard broad blade
Java fern latifolia
wider, shorter leaves
Java fern narrow leaf
slim blades in dense clumps
Trident java fern
forked, three-pronged leavesThor's Trident java fern
broader, heavier forks than trident
Windelov java fern
lace-fringed leaf tips
Petite java fern
miniature crown for nano tanks
Philippine java fern
hammered leaf texture
Care, the same for every variety
One setup covers every variety on this page.
- Light
- Low light
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Placement
- Epiphyte
- Temperature
- 64–86°F (18–30°C)
- pH
- 5.0–8.0
One fern, many blades
Windelov's lace tips, Trident's forks and Narrow Leaf's slim blades are all selections of the same fern, kept in circulation by nurseries because they hold their shape. Botany reshuffled the genus from Microsorum to Leptochilus, but the plant in shops did not change, and neither did its care.
Plantlets, not problems
Mature leaves grow black bumps along their undersides and edges, and old leaves sometimes brown off while tiny plants sprout from them. That is how java fern reproduces: each plantlet can be pulled off once it has roots and tied down as a new fern. It is easy to mistake for disease, and it never is.
The rhizome stays in open water
Java fern feeds through its rhizome and roots from the water column, not the substrate. Bury the rhizome and it rots; tie or glue it to wood or rock and it slowly walks across the hardscape, leaf by leaf.
Common questions
Why are there black spots under the leaves?
They are spore patches and baby plantlets, not a disease. Leave them and you get free ferns.
Does java fern need substrate?
No. It grows attached to wood or rock, and it is one of the few plants that thrives in a bare-bottom tank.
Can java fern handle low light?
Yes, better than almost anything else in the hobby. Strong light mostly just invites algae onto its slow leaves.
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