Platycerium (Staghorn) Ferns As Epiphytes
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Prehistoric Platycerium Fern Hillii
Prehistoric Platycerium (Staghorn) Fern Hillii Is A Unique And Fantastic Looking Species , With Its Wide And Short Fertile Fronds Which Are Rounded And Having No Indentations . The Shield Fronds , Of This Species , Lie Flat Against Its Root Mass And Host Plant .
This Species Can Be Found Growing , Living And Surviving , Within The Warm Tropical Moist Regions Of New Guinea And Primarily Calls This Area Its Natural Living Habitat , But Can Be Found Living In Australia But Not To Often . The Area Of New Guinea Where Prehistoric Platycerium Fern Hillii Can Be Found Living Is Very Seldom Traveled By Modern Man . This Area Is Full Of Natures Tropical Wonders And Will Place Modern Man In The Position Of Becoming Part Of Natures Food Chain , If He Were To Enter . Very Few Collectors Have In Their Possession A True Platycerium Fern Hillii , But You Can Find Any Number Of Hillii Cultivars Within Collections .
The Shield Fronds , Of This Species , Can Become Quite Large And Lie Completely Flat And Tight Against Its Root Mass And Host Plant . The Species Has Very Small Craters Throughout Its Shield Fronds And The Fronds Are A Light Green Color And Does Not Last A Full Season , But Are Still Nice Looking When They (die) Back . Due To The Amount Of Moisture Needed For This Species To Grow , Live , Survive And Produce Pups Its Shield Fronds Will Die Very Quickly , In Early Spring . Most Of The Platycerium Fern Hillii Cultivars Will Posses The Shield Fronds Of The True Species .
Another Factor , Which Makes This Species Unique , Is The Look And Shape Of Its Fertile Fronds . Nature Has Given Prehistoric Platycerium Fern Hillii Fertile Fronds Like No Other Platycerium Fern And This Makes These Fertile Fronds So Unique , In Their Own Right . The Species Fertile Fronds Are Thin Next To The Growing Bud , But Begin An Upward And Outward Travel Ending With Very Wide Fingers At The Tips . Positioned On The Under Side Of Each Finger Is A Spore Patch And These Spores Are Released A Little At A Time From Spore Patch To Spore Patch , Which Is Unlike Platycerium Fern Coronarium And Some Of The Other Species Which Releases Their Spores All At One Time .
Over The Years Since The Introduction Of Prehistoric Platycerium Fern Hillii , A Number Of Collectors Have Cross Bred This Species With Other Hybrid Cultivars Of Platycerium Fern Bifurcatum And The True Hillii Species . There Are Quite A Few Cultivars Now Of Platycerium Fern Hillii , With A Lot Of Different Names But Having Very Little Difference Between Them . We At Madagascar Tropicals Think Platycerium Fern Bifurcatum Is The Only Platycerium Species Hillii Mixes Well With . Out Of All The Platycerium Fern Hillii Cultivars The Nursery Has Found Or Seen There Is Only One Hillii Cultivar That We Feel Is Worth Taking The Time To Cultivate , Which Is Hillii Excellence . This Hillii Cultivar Looks Just Like The True Hillii Species , But Its Fertile Fronds Can Reach A Length Of Around (2 1/2) To (3) Feet Or More .
Platy. Fern Hillii Is A Very Easy Species To Cultivate , When Given Its Proper Cultivating Requirements . This Species Requires Warmth And Coolness . During The Winter Season Temperatures Should Not Fall Below (40)Degrees And Given Plenty Of Moisture , From Early Spring Through Mid Fall , But Also Allowing The Species To Dry A Little Between Watering So The Roots Can Travel To The Moist Host Plant . This Species Can Not Be Treated Or Cultivated Like Platycerium Fern Bifurcatum , Because Of Its Natural Cultivating Habitat , Which Is Warm , Moist And Semi Aired . Platy. Fern Bifurcatum Has A Natural Cultivating Habitat Which Is Just The Opposite .
Another Point Which Should Be Made About The True Platycerium Fern Hillii Species Is The Species Produces Pups Quite Freely , But Only After Becoming Established . We Assume This Is Due To The Amount Of Moisture That Must Be Given To The Species . This High Moisture Level Causes The Growing Roots To Travel Very Slowly To The Root Mass And To Its Host Plant . Most Plants That You Will Receive Are Pups Removed From A Mature Platycerium Fern Hillii Species And We At Madagascar Tropicals Will Strive To Change This Method Of Receiving The Platycerium Fern Species .
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