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]
Comparison to other tree ferns
It can be distinguished from the forest tree fern (''A. capensis'') by its thick trunk, and by its smallest (third level) leaflets. The leaflets of ''A. dregei'' have smooth (entire) margins, while those of ''A. capensis'' are serrated. Each leaflet of ''A. dregei'' has multiple seedcases on its underside, while a leaflet of ''A. capensis'' has only one per leaflet. The 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 of ''A. capensis'' come off lower, and it usually has several small, residual leaf remnants, which sprout in tufts among its fronds at the top of its stem.
The only other indigenous tree ferns of the southern African region, '' Alsophila manniana'' and '' A. thomsonii'', are both native to Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
. They can be distinguished from ''A. dregei'' by stem, stalk and frond appearance. ''A. manniana'' has sharp spikes on a slender trunk and frond stems. ''A. thomsonii'' has light-coloured, twisted hairs under its leaflets.
The invasive ''Sphaeropteris cooperi'' can be distinguished from ''A. dregei'' by the hairy white and brown scales on the new unfurling leaf stipes and sometimes by faint serrations on the leaflets.
Taxonomy
The specific epithet ''dregei'' commemorates Johann Franz Drège
Johann Fran(t)z Drège (or Jean François Drège) (25 March 1794 Altona, Hamburg, Germany – 3 February 1881 Altona, Hamburg, Germany), commonly referred to by his standard botanical author abbreviation Drège, was a German horticulturalist, botan ...
(1794-1881), a German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
plant collector and explorer who worked extensively in South Africa and who is referred to as Drège when citing botanical names.[
]
Distribution and habitat
It is native to Eswatini, Lesotho, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
, Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
, Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
and South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
from the Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
province to KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga.
''Alsophila dregei'' grows on stream banks, in forest margins and in grasslands. It often grows in the open, in full, direct sunlight, provided there is sufficient moisture. Plants are most common at an altitude of . In the wild, it is known to be fire resistant.
Cultivation
''Alsophila dregei'' is rarely common in cultivation as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...
, especially in South Africa and Australia. Plants should be sheltered and grown in rich humus, with a constant supply of moisture. This species can survive light frosts with little damage.
Gallery
File:Cyathea dregei - Common Tree Fern - Cape Town.jpg, Habitat
File:Cyathea dregei, frond-bosy, Iphithi NR.jpg, Tripinnate
Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...
frond
File:Tree fern 2.jpg, Mature trunk
File:Cyathea dregei - Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg - DSC08026.JPG, New fronds
References
Cold-hardy tree ferns: ''Cyathea dregei''
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q65929242, from2=Q5197558
dregei
Ferns of Africa
Flora of Southern Africa
Trees of South Africa
Garden plants of Africa
Ornamental trees