Platycerium bifurcatum
Elkhorn Fern
Elkhorn Fern
Wikipedia links: Monilophytes > Polypodiales > Polypodiaceae > Platycerium bifurcatum
Other links:
Common name: Elkhorn Fern
Also, the common staghorn fern
Conservation status: . . .
Etymology:
The genus name Platycerium comes from the Greek platys (flat), and ceras (horn)
The specific epithet bifurcatum means bifurcated or forked
Both names are referring to the fertile fronds
Spores:
Leaves:
Growing to 90 cm tall by 80 cm broad
It has heart-shaped sterile fronds 12–45 cm long
The arching grey-green fertile fronds are forked and strap-shaped
They grow up to 90 cm long
Stem & branches:
Roots:
Habit:
It is a bracket epiphyte
Habitat:
Occurring in and near rainforests.
Distribution:
Native to Java, New Guinea and eastern Australia, in NSW, Queensland and on Lord Howe Island
Additional notes:
Cultivation
It is cultivated as an ornamental plant for gardens
With a minimum temperature requirement of 5 °C
In temperate regions it may be grown outdoors in sheltered locations, otherwise as a houseplant
It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit
Sources of information: