Platycerium madagascariense

Family: Polypodiaceae

Country of Origin: Madagascar

Description: The oddly puckered shield fronds have spaces between them that are occupied by ants

Accession #: 200100005

Accession Date: 2011-10-20 00:00:00

Bloom Status: 🪴 Not Flowering

Location: 6901

Quantity: 1

Source: Matt Opel

Culture: Reputed to be the easiest staghorn fern to kill, and exceedingly rare in cultivation. Seems to require good light, high humidity, and special vigilance against slugs and insect pests. Should be mounted in sphagnum moss, and NEVER allowed to dry out. According to the owners of the plant that produced the spores that these plants were raised from, theirs was part of a batch of about 50 plants imported to the US. To the best of their knowledge, it was the only plant still alive after a year. If possible, new plants should be started from spore on a regular basis, as this species may be naturally short-lived. ¹

Division: Ferns

Class: Polypodiopsida

Subclass: Polypodiidae

Order: Polypodiales

SubOrder: Polypodiineae

Family: Polypodiaceae

SubFamily: Platycerioideae