| Brittle maidenhair
|
| Adiantum tenerum
|
| Pteridaceae
|
Landscape Uses:
|
|
A delicate accent fern on exposed moist limestone in rock gardens and on the banks of water features such as natural pools. Identified by Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden as a native that does especially well in shade in this brochure. |
Ecological Restoration Notes: |
|
Limited to exposed moist limestone in rockland hammocks with constantly high humidity. The lowered water table in Miami-Dade County makes this a difficult species to incorporate into restoration projects. |
| Availability: |
|
Grown by enthusiasts. |
| Description: |
| |
Medium herbaceous fern with delicate leaflets (pinnae). |
| Height: |
| |
About 12-18 inches in height. About as broad as tall. |
| Growth Rate: |
| |
Moderate. |
| Range: |
| |
Miami-Dade County; disjunct in central and northern peninsular Florida; West Indies, Central America and Venezuela. |
| Habitats: |
| |
On moist limestone in rockland hammocks. |
| Soils: |
| |
Moist limestone rock, with or without an accumulation of humusy material. |
| Nutritional Requirements: |
| |
Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive. |
| Salt Water Tolerance: |
| |
Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water. |
| Salt Wind Tolerance: |
| |
Low; salt wind may burn the leaves. |
| Drought Tolerance: |
| |
Low; requires moist substrate and high humidity and is intolerant of long periods of drought. |
| Light Requirements: |
| |
Light shade. |
| Flower Color: |
| |
N/A. |
| Flower Characteristics: |
| |
There are no flowers; the plants reproduce by spores. |
| Flowering Season: |
| |
All year. |
| Fruit: |
| |
Inconspicuous spores. |
| Wildlife and Ecology: |
| |
|
| Horticultural Notes: |
| |
Can be grown from spores. |
| Comments: |
| |
In the right situations, this rock-loving fern will recruit readily in the garden. It is listed as endangered by the state of Florida. |
|
|
|
George D. Gann in habitat, Dominican Republic, 2011
|
|
George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Florida, 2005
|
|
|
|