This fern will grow into a palm like tree. Like a palm it will shed lower branches along the trunk as it grows. It is a fast growing fern.
It did not mind last winter’s temperature drops into the high 20s. It is quite cold hardy.
It prefers full sun and moist soil. This one spent its first year in my garden in a dry, shady location. I moved it to a sunnier, damper spot so it should do much better this year.
It also wants lots of organic matter, so be free handed with the mulch or organic fertilizers around this plant.
The tree can reach 20m in height and fronds can be as large as 4-6m in length.
Things to watch for on ferns:
Leaf scotch: appears during dry, windy weather. Water frequently and deeply and provide what shade and shelter you can. I’ve really had a problem with leaf scorch on these ferns in the spring of 2008.
Scale: looks like small brown bumps on stems and underside of leaves. I use orange oil.
Mealy bugs: Looks like white fuzz on plants. I just wash them off with a garden hose.
1 response so far ↓
1 admin // Jan 7, 2008 at 1:42 pm
These guys have stopped growing now that the weather is cooler. The low temperatures into the high 20s’ F doesn’t seem to have bothered them otherwise.
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