General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations. Also along the margins of ponds and lakes.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Medium herbaceous fern.
Dimensions: Typically 1-2 feet in height. Spreads from underground stems and forms small patches.
Growth Rate: Moderate.
Range:
Widespread in eastern and central North America south to Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland; Bermuda and Cuba.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of Postal Code Areas of IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Habitats: Wet hammocks and marshes.
Soils: Seasonally wet to moist, moderately well-drained to poorly drained organic soils.
Nutritional Requirements: Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive.
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: Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements: Light shade to moderate shade.
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 with difficulty, and division.
