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Platycerium stemaria The photo on the left is taken in high light, however the plant is normally grown in low light. |
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Platycerium stemaria is an African species and differs greatly from the other two African Species, P. elephantotis and P. alcicorne. The common name is Triangle Staghorn.
There are two spore patches on each fertile frond, one on each main lobe, in the area of its division. When mature, the spore patches are dark brown.
Photo Facebook, by Peterne Katai in Thailand |
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 A
little known cultivar P. stemaria cv 'Laurentii'Click on photo to enlarge Typical of most P. stemaria, each fertile frond forks then forks a second time with unusually long fingers. This is not a mature platy and the characteristics are not clear. The long fertile fronds may be a product of growing in a low light environment. If so the spore patches will be reduced.
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This platy is a P. stemaria cv 'Hawke' and is from Don Callard's collection. It is considered a extreme example of the P. stemaria. Notice the wide fertile fronds with short fingers after the second division. There is a spore patch in the right frond. Click on photo to enlarge.
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A few months ago I got a P. stemaria from Thailand. This photo shows the bud and hair for new growth on Jan 1 2016
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Its
shields are tall, wide, and wavy at the tip. They tend to be
thin with spaces between them where debris collects. The wide
fertile fronds are often shiny on the upper surface, and quite hairy
on the underneath. The P. stemeria can show great difference in
variety in length on the same plant, and how many ultimate tips they
have, but all show a main division into the two lobes and each of
these lobes divides once again.
