Soft Fern

Christella dentata

"Christella dentata" is a small fern with widespread distribution in Australia and islands in the south Pacific Ocean. There are many local common names. In New South Wales it grows north from the southern Illawarra region and is known as Binung.

It was the first species of fern to become naturalised on the Hawaiian Islands, recorded intiially in Oahu in 1887 and now found on all major islands there. There it interbreeds with the local species "C. cyatheoides", with the resultant hybrid offspring sterile.
Thelypteris dentata This Asian native has naturalized in concrete walls and other such alkaline places along the East Coast, and therefore has been overlooked as a garden specimen. In our trials, this has proven to be a great upright garden specimen. Its narrow, fuzzy, light-green fronds and vertical stature allow it to be used among other plants without eating them alive. While it prefers moist soils, our dry acidic sand has suited it just fine. Botany,Christella dentata,Detail,Downy maiden fern,Fern,Florida,Geotagged,Plant,Spring,Thelypteridaceae,Thelypteris dentata,United States,Wild,downy shield fern,nature,photo by T.G,tapering tri-vein fern

Habitat

Found on the margins of rainforest, by streams or in more open forests with adequate moisture.

Reproduction

Sori are circular in shape, with a hairy closed covering.

Uses

"C. dentata" is an edible fern, and also a folk remedy for skin diseases. Pharmacological study found that water extract of the fern was as toxic as anticancer drug 5-fluorouracil against human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell line.

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Taxonomy
KingdomPlantae
DivisionPolypodiophyta
ClassPolypodiopsida
OrderPolypodiales
FamilyThelypteridaceae
GenusChristella
SpeciesC. dentata
Photographed in
United States of America