Happy New Year from Walton Outdoors

December 31, 2010

This resurrection fern was discovered growing on a fallen live oak branch along Bruce Creek in Red Bay. It is often found growing along other epiphytes (a plant that grows upon another plant) such as lichen and Spanish moss. Lori Ceier/Walton Outdoors

May your new year be filled with prosperity and new growth

About resurrection fern:
Resurrection fern (Polypodium polypodioides) is an epiphyte that grows attached to branches of forest trees and sometimes upon rocks or dry ground. It is a common sight throughout Walton County and often found growing on the live oaks in our region.

This fern’s long thin rhizomes grow creeping along narrow cracks or in the furrows of the host tree’s bark.  They are about 6 in. (15 cm) long and 1.5 in. (4 cm) wide. The fronds are deeply incised, cut all the way to the rachis (the leaf stem).

Resurrection fern can be found in abundance on the magnificent grand live oak trees at Eden Gardens State Park. Lori Ceier/Walton Outdoors

When dry the resurrection fern is gray, scaly and curled up in wad, but when moisture returns the fronds resurrect becoming soft and green and unfurling to regain its original shape.

Information courtesy Floridata.com