Cheilanthes brownii

Pteridaceae

Cheilanthes brownii (Kuhn) Domin

Link to Australian Plant Name Index for publication details and synonyms: https://id.biodiversity.org.au/name/apni/62314

Woolly Resurrection Fern

Fronds to 35 cm long and 5 cm wide; stipe and rachis dark brown to black, with sparse to dense, slender, pointed hairs (6–12 cells), and very sparse scales. Lamina elliptic or lanceolate, 2 (–3)-pinnate (–4)-pinnatifid at base, larger pinnae narrow-triangular; pinnules obtuse, triangular; margins entire or lobed; upper surface with sparse to, more usually, very dense long hairs; lower surface with extremely dense, long hairs. Spores spherical, smooth or granulose, with varying amount of globular or randomly branched ornamentation or, sometimes, echinate processes; either ridged, 47–71 µm diam. and 16 per sporangium, or trilete, 34–48 µm diam. and 32 per sporangium.

Coastal and inland regions of tropical and subtropical Australia in QLD, NT and WA.

Terrestrial in soil pockets and rock crevices in open woodland hillsides in arid, semi-arid or monsoon areas. Not usually in rainforest but sometimes on exposed granite domes in rainforest areas.

Named after botanist Robert Brown, naturalist on Mathew Flinders circumnavigation of Australia. Brown collected the type in Arnhem Bay.

Best grown in a small container or in a shallow pocket of growing medium on rock in a well lit part of a tropical garden. This species does not like being kept wet all year round.

Similar to Cheilanthes lasiophylla which has branched lamina hairs instead of the unbranched hairs found in C. brownii.