Fittonia plant (nerve plant) care

Fittonia is a beautiful ground covering plant and use as houseplant. Fittonia also know as nerve plant cause of thier leaves texture, it's a genus of flowering  plants in the Acanthus family Acanthaceae. Fittonia is native to tropical  rainforest in South America. 

                            Fittonia have many colours and varieties, this plant have fuzzy stems and bushy. Some species of Fittonia are use to cure headache , toothache, muscular pain and some religions make tea from there leaves. 

Fittonia (nerve plant) care

Soil

           Fittonia plant love rich moisture in soil so it's grow well in peat moss (cocopeat). Peat moss hold moisture for long time and also well drain. You can mix leaf mold with peat moss for plant good health. 

Water 

            Fittonia need regular watering for good growth or kept soil moist because fittonia get in stress very easy when it's soil get dry. But dont overwater your fittonia that root rod, next water your fittonia when it's soil top surface get dry out. When your fittonia plant's leaves getting curl and dropping thats your plant need water.

Sunlight

                  Fittonia grow well in bright to medium indirect sunlight. Fittonia can't survive in direct sunlight burn their leaves. If you want to place it in room so you need window with bright indirect sunlight.

Fertilize

                  Fertilize your Fittonia plant 2 time in a month in growing season normally use fertilize once in a month. You can use vermi compost or leaf mold that is good for fittonia growth, you can also use spray fertilize and mist 2 to 3 times in 15days on their leaves. 

Temperature

                        Fittonia plant can grow 15 to 30 °C temperature range and can't survive below 13 °C. Love high humidity level. 

Size

            Fittonia can grow up 4 to 6 inchs in height and in width No limit because fittonia also know ground covering plant. 

Pruning

                If your plant getting in bad shape you need to prune it or you want to make your fittonia more bushy so you need to prune it. When you going to prune your fittonia start cut after node or before a node.

Propagation

                          Fittonia mostly propagated from stem cutting this is very easy way. You need 2 to 3 inch stem cutting then remove leaves from bottom node  and stem put in cocopeat make sure one node in soil, kept cocopeat moist and wait for rooting it's take 3 to 4 weeks. 

Common problems

Why fittonia leave (nerve plant) get yellow, brown and black spots and faint   

                         Your plant look faint and dropping leaves thats your plant underwatered.If your fittonia plants have yellow, brown and Black spots on leaves that is you are overwatering that cause of root rod. Cause of brown tips of leaves are low humidity and high heat. 

                                          Fittonia plant have some bacterial and fungal infections,if you mostly mist on it late evening and get wet for all night. You need to mist if on morning time Or before evening because day time heat evaporate water after some time and no more water to get fungal infections.

                        Pest attack like slugs, caterpillars and snails they eat their beautiful leaves pick them and throw them out from your garden. Spray neem oil 2 time a week  if you look aphids, mites and mealybugs on your plants.