The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Asplenium gracillimum

Etymology

Asplenium: From the Greek a- 'without' and splene 'spleen', a northern hemisphere species, the black spleenwort (Asplenium adiantum-nigrum), was once believed to be a cure for diseases of the spleen.
gracillimum: Slender or most graceful; from the Latin gracilis

Common Name(s)

hen & chicken fern

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened

Authority

Asplenium gracillimum Colenso

Family

Aspleniaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

ASPGRA

Structural Class

Ferns

Synonyms

Asplenium bulbiferum subsp. gracillimum (Colenso) Brownsey

Distribution

Indigenous. New Zealand, North, South, Stewart and Chatham Islands. Also in Australia

Habitat

Coastal to subalpine. Usually in lowland forest where it is a common species of the ground-layer, especially in high rainfall areas. Commonly associated with riparian forest, and as a species of base-rich substrates but also typical of colluvium and stream side banks. It is commonly sympatric with A. bulbiferum. Asplenium gracillimum appears to have a higher altitudinal range than A. bulbiferum and is also more common in drier eastern forests than A. bulbiferum. Chatham Island populations of A. gracillimum are frequently bulbiferous.

Features

Rhizome short, stout, erect, bearing ovate scales up to 15 × 5 mm. Stipes 50-300 mm long, brown on underside, green above, stout, covered in small brown ovate scales with apices drawn into long filiform projections. Laminae lanceolate to elliptic, 0.15-1.20 m, 70-300 mm, bi- to tripinnate, sometimes bearing bulbils. Raches dark green to blue-green, rarely bulbiferous, scaly, prominently grooved. Pinnae 15-30 (or more) pairs, ovate to narrowly ovate, acuminate, shortly stalked, 30-200 × 10-50 mm, scaly on underside, basal pair pointing downwards when fresh. Secondary pinnae sessile or shortly stalked, very narrowly elliptic to ovate or elliptic, obtuse, deeply serrate or sometimes almost pinnate, decreasing in size from base to apex, basal acroscopic pinnule often enlarged (up to 40 × 10 mm). Ultimate pinnules narrowly oblong, ± entire to crenate-serrate, up to 10 mm long. Sori numerous, broad, submarginal, 2-4 mm long.

Similar Taxa

Asplenium gracillimum is only ever likely to be confused with the closely related A. bulbiferum G.Forst. From that species it is distinguished by its infrequently bulbiferous, dark green to blue-green fronds, and stipe scales which have long filiform apices. Asplenium gracillimum is an octoploid (2n = 288) and A. bulbiferum tetraploid (2n = 144), so hybrids between these two species are sterile.

Flowering

Not applicable - spore producing

Flower Colours

No Flowers

Fruiting

Not applicable - spore producing

Propagation Technique

Easily grown, and popular in cultivation. However, most plants sold as this species are the sterile hybrid A. xlucrosum Perrie et Brownsey (A. bulbliferum x A. dimorphum Kunze). An excellent pot plant but as with all asplenia prone to infestations of scale and mealy bugs.

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 288

Endemic Taxon

No

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Life Cycle and Dispersal

Minute spores are wind dispersed (Thorsen et al., 2009).

This page last updated on 14 Aug 2014