Platycerium, French Staghorn Fern, Silver Elkhorn Fern 'Lemoinei'

I've had one for two months now. It does have a lightly more silver blue coloration then regular P.bifurcatum..I'm hoping it increases as...Read More the plant gains size.
Here,it can take much sun in the SF bay area,and probably needs it to keep from rotting.
Update- over four years later is thriving if slower than P.bifurcatum or P.superbum. Typical care. Maybe likes more sun than the others. Or,at least to be more silvery it needs more sun.

Maybe a bit common now, but still an eyecatcher in the gardens. Zone 8b here in central Florida. One large ball became lodged in the cr...Read Moreotch of a Laurel oak. Survived hard freezes covered even though the leaves were lost. Free standing plants come in to avoid a freeze.

To start a new plant, I find a small new growth on the fern ball, poke my fingers into the ball and pull it out from behind. Then I secure to a wad of compressed Spanish moss, and keep moist. Slow to establish, but once growth starts, provide enough water so it doesn't dry out. The bigger the ball of the fern, the more drought tolerant, and cold tolerant.

I do find that red carpenter ants and those tiny paper wasps love to nest in these plants.

Platycerium veitchii 'Lemoinei' is apparently fairly hardy and tolerant of heat, sun, and dry conditions.

The species Plat...Read Moreycerium veitchii is endemic to Australia, where it grows on rocky outcrops in full sun.

I tried growing my first one in a wall mounted planter on the side of my house earlier this year. It seemed OK at first, but unfortunately did not last more than a few months. I'm not sure why this happened. Perhaps it was due to under/over watering, or fertilizing it. (Ferns which grow in xeric conditions tend to dislike fertilizer, or at least too much of it).

Anyway, I am just about to replace the earlier plant and try again in 2008.