General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts and occasionally by native plant nurseries.
Description: Large herbaceous fern.
Dimensions: Typically 3-4 feet in height. Spreading from underground stems (rhizomes) and forming large open to dense patches.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
Eastern and central United States west to Texas and south to Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of Postal Code Areas of IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Habitats: Pinelands and moist forests.
Soils: Moist, well-drained sandy soils, usually without humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements: Low; it grows in nutrient poor soils.
Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation.
Drought Tolerance: High; does not require any supplemental water once established.
Light Requirements: Full sun.
Flower Color: N/A.
Flower Characteristics: There are no flowers; the plants reproduce by spores.
Flowering Season: Summer-fall.
Fruit: Inconspicuous spores.
Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from spores and division.
