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Blechnum penna-marina
Austroblechnum penna-marina is a small, hardy fern from the southern hemisphere, native to New Zealand, Australia, South America and subantarctic islands, where it grows from sea level to alpine heights. It is grown in gardens for its low, spreading habit and suits cool, moist sites in temperate climates.
Austroblechnum penna-marina, synonym Blechnum penna-marina, known as Antarctic hard-fern, Little Hard Fern, Alpine Hard Fern, alpine water fern and pinque (Chilean Spanish), is a species of fern in the family Blechnaceae. It is a widely distributed fern species in the southern hemisphere, with a natural range including New Zealand, Australia, and South America.
It has wiry rhizomes and exhibits strong dimorphism in its fronds. The sterile fronds are prostrate or semi-erect, growing up to 400 mm in length, while the fertile fronds are longer and held erect. The sterile fronds have a yellow-brown stem, while the fertile fronds have a purplish-black stipe. Both types of fronds have pinnatisect laminae with free veins.
The species is widely distributed throughout the global south, including New Zealand, Australia, and South America. It is native to Marion Island, a subantarctic island halfway between Africa and Antarctica.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Austroblechnum penna-marina 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.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
