Landscape Uses:
	Specimen or accent groundcover in moist to wet sites.
Ecological Restoration Notes:
Availability:
	Grown by one or two native plant nurseries in South Florida.
Description:
	large herbaceous fern.
Height:
	About 3-4 feet in height. About as broad as tall.
Growth Rate:
	Moderate.
Range:
	Widespread in eastern and central North America south to Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland; West Indies, Mexico and Central America. Not documented on barrier islands in South Florida, but possibly historically present; it grows well at Pan’s Garden in Palm Beach.
Habitats:
	Swamps and marshes.
Soils:
	Wet, poorly-drained organic soils, acid pH.
Nutritional Requirements:
	High; requires rich organic soils for optimal growth.
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 to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements:
	Full sun to light shade or moderate shade.
Flower Color:
	N/A.
Flower Characteristics:
	There are no flowers; the plants reproduce by spores.
Flowering Season:
	Spring.
Fruit:
	Inconspicuous spores.
Wildlife and Ecology:
Horticultural Notes:
	Can be grown from spores.
Comments:
	It is listed as commercially exploited by the state of Florida.