Cyathea Medullaris

[pogobob]

Looking for Cyathea Medullris. anyone know of any in So Cal?...Thanks,Bob

[osideterry]

I think Neoflora still might have Cyathea brownii and Cyathea cooperi "Brentwood". If he doesn't have it he might know who does. You might try pm'ing him.

[bahia]

Darn,

I was hoping someone with connections would chime in with some sources for this tree fern!  I think there would definitely be a market for Cyathea medularis, and only seem to see the occasional big specimen in gardens here in the San Francisco Bay Area, but never any 1 or 5 gallon sized plants for sale, (or 15 gallon either, for that matter).  It is kind of strange that some gorgeous and fairly easy growing trees ferns such as this one, Dicksonia squarrosa. D. sellowiana, and others like Cyathea australis, Cibotium glaucum and Blechnum tabulare or Blechnum brasilience are not available for sale like dime a dozen Cyathea cooperi or Dicksonia antarctica.  Are the spores for these other species that much more difficult to get established, or so slow growing from spores that they aren't commercially viable?

[pogobob]

David, you answered your own question correctly. Cyathea Medullaris, although a fast grower and very hardy in Coastal California, has a low success rate from spore production compared to the commonly available treeferns. They are sometimes offered at fern society meetings and plant sales at botanical gardens. The Fern Factory, a commercial fern grower in Riverside county sometimes offers the above mentioned and also other hard to find ferns of many types. They are currently sold out of the Medullaris, and suffered losses in Decembers freeze. some will become available later this year they tell me. Thanks for any leads...Bob

[Darold Petty]

This fern seems to be poor at moisture transmission through the stem, compared to other tree ferns grown in California.  Here in the Bay Area, they typically look worse as the dry summer progresses. I would recommend overhead watering of the top as well as soil irrigation.  Mine looks great, but it's always cool and foggy in my yard!