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| Category: Fern |
| Family: Polypodiaceae (Common Ferns) |
| Origin: Central America (North America) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: NA |
| Bloomtime: Not Significant |
| Synonyms: [Polypodium aureum] |
| Height: 2-3 feet |
| Width: 2-3 feet |
| Exposure: Shade |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Medium Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 15-20° F |
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Phlebodium aureum (Rabbit's Foot Fern) - This shade-loving medium sized fern has large pale gray-green arching fronds that are deeply lobed with large spores in two rows on the undersides of the leaves. The fronds rise up 2 to 3 feet from the thick creeping rhizomes that are so covered with brown scales that it looks like fur. This fern needs a fairly well-drained soil and tolerates situations where it gets only occasional irrigation but grows more robust in wetter conditions. It also tolerates some direct morning or late afternoon sun but seems to grow best in bright shade. It has proven hardy in our garden to short periods as low as 25° F and we have reports from a gardener in Jacksonville, Florida that it has tolerated 18° F there. It is an interesting and attractive groundcover in the near frost free garden and nice when used as a potted specimen. In Barbara Joe Hoshizaki and Robin Moran's Fern Growers Manual (Timber Press 2001) it is also listed as a good fern for growing indoors. This fern has a wide natural distribution from southern Florida and West Indies south through Mexico, Central America to northern South America. The name for the genus comes from the Greek word phlebodes (from 'phlebos' meaning "vein") that translates to "full of veins" in reference to the highly branched veins. Other common names include Golden Polypody, Gold Foot Fern, and Cabbage Palm Fern. Our thanks to Paul Gripp, founder of the Santa Barbara Orchid Estate for sharing this fern from his garden with us in 1988. We no longer have sufficient stock on this plant to divide from and so discontinued production in 2014.
This information about Phlebodium aureum displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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