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Buy your Dicksonia now

Does your home need a truly original touch? Consider Dicksonia!

Why? Well, there are so many beautiful houseplants but Dicksonia, thanks to its wild and exotic appearance, will be able to give you that primordial jungle feeling like few other plants can do! Its fronds are very green and stretch upwards, perhaps by pushing our imagination a little we could imagine some primordial creature making it its meal or a refuge from other predators.

Furthermore, taking care of it is really simple, just a few precautions and you will be able to invite the first dinosaur that walks down the street into your home, making it feel completely at ease! Jokes aside, Dicksonia is certainly a characteristic and cheeky addition to your interior and, why not, also to the garden!

Dicksonia Antarctica

Dicksonia is a rather simple evergreen plant to deal with. It is part of the tropical ferns and its strong point are the very green and particular leaves that stand out upwards, giving it an ornamental value capable of enhancing any environment.
Also known as the «Tasmanian shrub fern», it is part of the Dicksoniaceae family and is widespread in the tropical forests of Asia, Australasia and South America, although its true origins can be found in Australia. Its natural environment includes dense forests where Dicksonia grows easily in the shade of larger trees, illuminated by shaded light and surrounded by plenty of humidity. Despite this, it is the only one of the Australian or New Zealand tree ferns that is truly winter-resistant.
It is a slow growing tree, increasing in size by approximately 3-5cm in a year. In its natural habitat it reaches 12m but don’t worry, it will never grow that much in an apartment, remaining a versatile indoor and outdoor plant. In addition to the beautiful fronds we find another peculiarity: the base of the plant appears almost hairy, in fact the «trunk» of this fern is composed of the decaying remains of previous growths

The history of Dicksonia

Dicksonia antarctica arrived in Falmouth Docks, a city in Great Britain, around 1840. The large fibrous trunks of this plant were used as ballast in ships’ holds to prevent the transported load from moving too much. If most of the trunks were hidden in the hold, some were lucky enough to be able to stay on the dock where, thanks to the light and air, they managed to grow foliage, then it was a short step from there to conquering the hearts of the English, so much so that shortly after it was adopted as an ornamental plant.
This brings us to a curiosity: the trunk of Dicksonia is covered with aerial roots, so wherever it is cut, it will be able, if planted, to root again.

Dicksonia in the kitchen

Well yes. Maybe many of you didn’t think you could take a fern and use it in the kitchen, but with a little effort it can be done!
Dicksonia has a pith that can be eaten both cooked and raw. In a book from 1889 “The useful plants native to Australia” reports that “the pulp of the upper part of the trunk is full of starch and is eaten by the Aborigines, both raw and roasted. The natives open the trunk from the upper part about 45cm and take out the heart, a substance similar to a Swedish turnip, and the thickness of a man’s arm. This is then roasted in the ashes, or eaten as bread, but is too bitter to satisfy an English palate”.
In short, it is perhaps not desirable to try to extract the marrow from your dear Dicksonia, but if you really want to try, anything is possible!

Caring for Dicksonia

As we were saying, Dicksonia won’t give you too many problems, but general advice is to do not remove the old withered leaves, even if they are not aesthetically beautiful they are very helpful to the plant in retaining moisture around the aerial roots wrapped around the stem.

LIGHT

As we mentioned before when talking about its natural habitat, the ideal exposure is or shielded light or partial shade. The direct rays of the sun, however, could be tolerated for a short time, but in this case it will be necessary to increase the doses of water.

WATERFALL

This type of fern prefers moist soil, so regular watering is highly recommended.

HUMIDITY

Humidity is very important, especially during the warmer months. In summer it may be a good practice to spray the entire plant several times a day, especially when the temperature exceeds 20°C. Similarly, in winter, increase vaporizations if you notice that the plant is positioned near a heat source.

LAND

The ideal soil for Dicksonia is a loose, well-drained growing medium, rich in compost and organic matter. A soil for indoor plants will be fine and, in this regard, we offer you Florenpot, a substrate specifically designed for indoor plants.

TEMPERATURE

It can resist temperatures below -5°C, especially if the plant is already a few years old. However, it is not recommended to leave it at such low temperatures for long periods, as it is still a tropical plant not used to dealing with the cold.

FERTILIZATION

This tree fern certainly benefits from fertilization, a normal liquid fertilizer for green plants will do, always follow the instructions given on the label.

PROPAGATION

Dicksonia antarctica can be propagated through cuttings or spores.