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Pendant kihifern

Adenophorus periens

Also called Pendant Kihi Fern

Pendant kihifern
Photo: John Game, CC BY 2.0

Pendant kihi fern (Adenophorus periens) is a rare Hawaiian epiphytic fern that grows on trees in wet mountain forests, with long hanging fronds. It is a federally endangered species, so it is not commonly grown in gardens; the notes below describe its needs in cultivation.

Family
Polypodiaceae (Polypody fern family)
Grows as
Tree, Fern
Light
Part shade, Shade
Water
Keep the roots and fronds evenly moist without soggy conditions, using rainwater or soft water where possible.
Soil
Epiphytic: a loose, airy mix of fine bark, perlite and sphagnum, or mounted on a wood or cork slab.
Temperature
18-27 °C; protect below 10 °C
How easy
Hard

About

Adenophorus periens is a rare species of fern known by the common name pendant kihi fern. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known from one population in Puna on the island of Hawaii and a few occurrences on Kauai and Molokai. The fern occurs in wet mountain forests on volcanic slopes. It grows on trees. There are perhaps 2000 individual plants remaining. This is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.

This fern is easily distinguished from others in its genus, with its long, hanging fronds that may exceed 40 centimeters in length, twice as long as other Adenophorus. The leaflets on the fronds are twisted at an angle to the rachis and the leaf edges are lined with unique hairs. Genetic analysis reveals that the fern has a high genetic diversity for such a rare species.

Other Adenophorus plants

Wahini noho mauna · Kihifern

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Adenophorus periens by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

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