Staghorn Fern

The two frond types set this fern apart. The shield fronds, sometimes called basal fronds, start out green and rounded, then dry to a papery tan and overlap one another around the plant’s base. The fertile fronds are the showy ones. They rise and arch to about three feet long, occasionally more, and split near their tips into the forked shape that gives the staghorn its name. Both kinds are dusted with a grayish-white felt of fine hairs, called trichomes, which gives the foliage its soft, muted color. On the undersides of mature fertile fronds, dark patches appear where the plant forms its spores, the dust-like cells ferns use to reproduce in place of seeds.

In the wild, Platycerium bifurcatum lives in and near the rainforests of eastern Australia, perched on tree trunks and limbs well above the forest floor. Life in the canopy shaped its unusual design. The overlapping shield fronds work like a basket, catching falling leaves, bark, rainwater, and dust, and as this litter breaks down, it feeds the roots tucked safely behind the fronds. The felt of hairs on the leaves does double duty, softening the strong light that filters through the treetops and slowing water loss on breezy, exposed perches. These same traits guide how it grows best in cultivation. It prefers bright, filtered light rather than direct sun, which can scorch the fronds, and it wants steady moisture and humid air rather than dry heat. It is tender to frost, so gardeners in cooler regions grow it mounted on boards or in hanging baskets that can move indoors for winter, while those in nearly frost-free areas can leave it outdoors year-round in a shaded spot.

The name tells part of the story. Platycerium comes from Greek words for flat and horn, and bifurcatum means twice-forked, both pointing to the antler-like fertile fronds. Beyond spores, the fern also spreads by sending out plantlets, known as pups, from its branching underground stem, or rhizome, so one plant slowly becomes a colony. Botanists studying wild colonies on Lord Howe Island have even found that different individuals seem to take on different roles, with some gathering water and others storing it. This is the most widely grown and cold-tolerant staghorn fern, which is why it is so often the one sold in nurseries, and it is not toxic to people or pets. One honest caution: in warm, humid, frost-free regions such as parts of Florida and Hawaii, it can escape gardens and naturalize, so it is best kept contained where winters stay mild.