Description
This small evergreen fern occupies an out of the way niche in the wet coastal region of the Pacific Northwest. Its pencil thin rhizomes, nestled beneath thick moss patches, anchor themselves firm by clinging to the Big Leaf maple’s craggy bark. They also adorn moss covered rotting logs where their charm can be appreciated up close without the aid of binoculars.
I should chew a small piece of rhizome before attesting how licorice-y it actually is, but I really don’t like black licorice. I’ve read a small piece chewed (not swallowed) before sipping water is quite enjoyable and good for the throat. Its rhizomes was/is used extensively as a sweetener and a medicinal by many First Nation’s groups.
- Seed/spore Count: +100
- Collection Date: December 2024
- Hardiness Zone: 4-9
- Height and Width: 30cm x ?
- Habitat: dappled shade; moist humus rich soil; natural habitat: moss covered deciduous trees and logs.
- Family: Polypodiaceae
How to germinate Polypodium glycyrrhiza seeds
Prepare a well draining humus rich acidic moist medium and pack firm into pots or plug trays. Sterilize medium surface via pouring very hot or boiling water on the surface. Sow only when the medium is cool to the touch. Mix with a very small amount of 20/30 grade clean silica sand. Just enough sand to coat the grains in fine spore and distribute evenly over the surface (you should see more medium than sand when done). Mist well as to wash the spore from the sand grains and onto the medium surface. A clear humidity retaining covering is essential to keep everything moist. Give 15-25C and 10 hrs/day of bright indirect light. Now things get weird. The spore ‘hatch’ to create a blanket of green of female and male prothalli. These produce gametes. Sperm swims to the egg and, voila!, fertilization occurs. From the female prohalli, small fronds will appear. The medium should be sufficiently hydrated and the humidity is securely maintained. Misting when the sperm are swimming will result in failure. Not having adequate moisture to thwart sperm mobility is equally as fatal. It might sound complicated, but judging from all the ferns that pop up in my medium without prompting, its fairly easy.
