Elaphoglossum queenslandicum

Dryopteridaceae

Elaphoglossum queenslandicum S.B.Andrews

Link to Australian Plant Name Index for publication details and synonyms: https://id.biodiversity.org.au/name/apni/116279

Hart's Tongue-Fern

Rhizome short-creeping; scales ovate to narrowly ovate, 3.5–8 mm long, 1–2.5 mm wide, with acuminate apices. Fronds simple, crowded; fertile lamina smaller but usually on a longer stipe. Stipe 2–9.5 cm long, scaly at the base. Lamina narrowly elliptic to narrowly ovate, 5–19 cm long, 1–3 cm wide, narrowed to both ends, dark green and shiny above, dull beneath; base cuneate, tapered to the stipe; margins entire or undulate; apex subacute to acute; phyllopodia c. 5 mm long; veins making a narrow angle with the midrib, simple or forked, free.

Endemic to NE QLD between Mt Finnegan and Eungella. Usually at altitudes above 800 m.

Lithophytic or occasionally epiphytic in high altitude rainforest.

Slow to propagate and establish. Can be cultivated in a moist fernery in a cool tropical or subtropical area.

Similar to Elaphoglossum callifolium. Elaphoglossum queenslandicum has narrower (10–25 mm), smaller fronds than E.callifolium (35–60 mm).