Leathery Polypodium fern is native to the Pacific Coast, from Santa Barbara, CA north to Vancouver Island, BC. The one I have comes from...Read More the beach in central California, near the southern end of its range. This fern is supposed to thrive on light shade and regular water, though it requires good drainage. In the wild around here it usually grows on rocky outcrops right above the high tide line, which suggests that it should be quite tolerant of salinity and high soil pH.
Further north, in more lush areas, this species is often found growing on tree trunks in coastal forests, but it should be happy in the ground as long as the soil drains quickly. It can take some drying out, but beware: heat will be the death of it. This fern is not appropriate for areas with hot, continental summer weather.
Mine hasn't done much yet- I collected it a month ago and it hasn't started growing yet. I'll post an update when it has become established.
Very slow to spread, but always looks great! This is a very drought-resistant tiny ground-covery fern for this area. No pests bother it.
Native to the USA (California, Oregon, Washington), Canada, and Mexico.
Hard to find in local nurseries. Grows well here in zone 9b.
Leathery Polypodium fern is native to the Pacific Coast, from Santa Barbara, CA north to Vancouver Island, BC. The one I have comes from...Read More