''Adiantum capillus-veneris'', the Southern maidenhair fern, black maidenhair fern, maidenhair fern, and venus hair fern, is a species of

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...

s in the genus ''

Adiantum ''Adiantum'' (), the maidenhair fern, is a genus of about 250 species of ferns in the subfamily Vittarioideae of the family Pteridaceae, though some researchers place it in its own family, Adiantaceae. The genus name comes from Greek, meaning "un ...

'' and the family

Pteridaceae Pteridaceae is a family of ferns in the order Polypodiales, including some 1150 known species in ca 45 genera (depending on taxonomic opinions), divided over five subfamilies. The family includes four groups of genera that are sometimes recogni ...

with a subcosmopolitan worldwide distribution. It is cultivated as a popular garden fern and

houseplant A houseplant, sometimes known as a pot plant, potted plant, or an indoor plant, is an ornamental plant that is grown indoors. As such, they are found in places like residences and offices, mainly for decorative purposes. Common houseplants are us ...

.Wildflower.org-NPIN: Adiantum capillus-veneris (Southern maidenhair fern)
. accessed 4.04.2011

Distribution

''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' is native to the southern half of the United States from

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

to the Atlantic coast, through Mexico and Central America, to South America. It is also native to

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago a ...

, the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is eq ...

Western Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Ana ...

, and

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

.Cundall. P., (2004) Native Plants:The definitive guide to Australian plants, Global Book Publishing Lane Cove, N.S.W, p.298, There are two disjunct occurrences in the northern part of North America: at Cascade Springs in the

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

and

Fairmont Hot Springs, British Columbia Fairmont Hot Springs is an unincorporated resort community located in south-eastern British Columbia, Canada commonly referred to as Fairmont. The community has a population of 476, but receives frequent tourists. The local resort is centered arou ...

. In both instances, the warm microclimate created by hot mineral springs permits the growth of the plant far north of its normal range. It is similar in Zvonce spa resort (Звоначка Бања, Zvonačka Banja), near Pirot in Serbia, where hot mineral springs provide adequate heat and humidity for the survival of this species. It is found in temperate climates from warm-temperate to tropical, where the moisture content is high but not saturating, in the moist, well-drained sand, loam or limestone of many

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s, including rainforests, shrub and woodlands, broadleaf and coniferous forests, and desert cliff

seep A seep or flush is a moist or wet place where water, usually groundwater, reaches the earth's surface from an underground aquifer. Description Seeps are usually not of sufficient volume to be flowing beyond their immediate above-ground location. ...

s, and

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a ...

s. It often may be seen growing on moist, sheltered and shaded

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

formations, generally south-facing in the southern hemisphere, north-facing in the north, or in gorges. It occurs throughout Africa in moist places by streams. On moist sandstone cliffs it grows in full or partial shade, even when unprotected. Capelvenere03(Parco dei Nebrodi)

Description

''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' grows from in height; its fronds arising in clusters from creeping rhizomes tall, with very delicate, light green

frond A frond is a large, divided leaf. In both common usage and botanical nomenclature, the leaves of ferns are referred to as fronds and some botanists restrict the term to this group. Other botanists allow the term frond to also apply to the lar ...

s much subdivided into pinnae long and broad; the frond rachis is black and wiry.

Cultivation

''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' is cultivated and widely available around the world for planting in

natural landscape A natural landscape is the original landscape that exists before it is acted upon by human culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the kn ...

native plant In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often popularised as "with no human intervention") during history. The term is equ ...

s and traditional

shade garden Shade gardens are a type of garden planted and grown in areas with little or no direct sunlight. Shade gardens may occur naturally or by design under trees, as well as on the side of buildings or fences. This style of garden presents certain challe ...

s, for outdoor

container garden Container gardening or pot gardening/farming is the practice of growing plants, including edible plants, exclusively in containers instead of planting them in the ground. A container in gardening is a small, enclosed and usually portable object ...

s, and commonly as an indoor

. ''

Adiantum × mairisii ''Adiantum'' × ''mairisii'' (/adiˌantəm bʌɪ mɛːɪsɪˌʌɪ/) (also known as Mairis maidenhair fern) is a species of fern in the family Pteridaceae. Taxonomy This species is a sterile hybrid between the southern maidenhair (''Adiantum ca ...

'' is a winter hardy hybrid of ''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' with another species, which is likely to be one of ''Adiantum raddianum'', ''Adiantum aethiopicum'', or ''Adiantum cuneatum''. As a houseplant, ''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' requires filtered light and very humid conditions. It should be grown in soil rich in organic matter and should be watered frequently but lightly, to keep the roots damp but not drenched. The temperature should not fall below . Is is propagated by dividing, making sure each clump has a section of rhizome.

Conservation

The fern is listed as an

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

(as southern maidenhair-fern) and

threatened species Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

(as venus hair fern), due to loss of

Appalachia Appalachia () is a cultural region in the Eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York State to northern Alabama and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ca ...

n habitat.

Uses

This plant is used medicinally by Native Americans. The Mahuna people use the plant internally for rheumatism, and the

Navajo people The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

of Kayenta, AZ use an

infusion Infusion is the process of extracting chemical compounds or flavors from plant material in a solvent such as water, oil or alcohol, by allowing the material to remain suspended in the solvent over time (a process often called steeping). An inf ...

of the plant as a lotion for bumblebee and centipede stings.Wyman, Leland C. and Stuart K. Harris 1951 The Ethnobotany of the Kayenta Navaho. Albuquerque. The University of New Mexico Press (p. 14) The Navajo people also smoke it or take it internally to treat mental illness. In the traditional medicine of Iran, frond infusion of ''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' is used for

jaundice Jaundice, also known as icterus, is a yellowish or greenish pigmentation of the skin and sclera due to high bilirubin levels. Jaundice in adults is typically a sign indicating the presence of underlying diseases involving abnormal heme meta ...

therapy.

References

External links

''Adiantum capillus-veneris'' - Southern maidenhair fern — U.C. Cal-Photo Gallery

USDA Profile for Adiantum capillus-veneris (common maidenhair fern)
*
U.C. Jepson Manual treatment for ''Adiantum capillus-veneris''

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Horticultural Growing Conditions and Propagation
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4678994 capillus-veneris Ferns of the Americas Ferns of Australasia Ferns of Europe Ferns of Asia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Plants used in traditional Native American medicine Garden plants of North America Garden plants of Asia Garden plants of Europe House plants