Phlebodium aureum ’Blue Star’

English name: Blue-star fern

Latin name: Phlebodium aureum ‘Blue Star’

Family: Polypodiaceae - Polypodiaceae

Origin:  Under cultivation at the Palm House

The blue-star fern occurs naturally in North America from as far north as southern Georgia and Florida, through the Caribbean to the northern and eastern parts of South America, as far as Paraguay. As an invasive species, it is also found in Hawaii; it is the only species of this family whose range extends beyond South America. This perennial reaches a height of over 1 metre. The leaves have long petioles; the leaf blade is pinnate with a strong lace pattern. In the Blue Star cultivar, it has a grey-blue colour. The leaves grow between 30 and 140 cm. long., developing a pale yellow sporangia at their base. The creeping rhizome, about 8 to 15 mm. in diameter, is densely coloured with gold-brown scales, each 10-20 mm. long.