Best soil composition for ferns

Question

Also, advice on proper soil moisture and misting.

Answer 1

This article is a basic fern how-to: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/ferns-houseplants/growing-ferns-indoors.htm
Use potting soil mix WITHOUT “moisture retentive” additives; I also like to add extra perlite to the mix.
You’ll need to have some method of testing the soil moisture — a moisture meter from the store, or a simple wooden skewer, will be perfect. You don’t want to let the soil on ferns dry out, but the moisture should get down to a “damp” level between waterings. Fingers are your best tool for testing moisture.
Also, you can mist if you want to, but for plants it’s totally unnecessary. Misting increases the humidity around the plant for less than 5 minutes! The common ferns that you find in stores will be content with your home humidity, or you can use a humidifier if you like it. The more exotic ferns that require higher humidity are best left to expert-level growers, who can provide climate controlled facilities.