Acrostichum aureum aka Leather Fern

Acrostichum aureum is also known as leather fern. It is part of the fern family Pteridaceae. It grows across the tropics in warm, damp lowlands. It grows in the subtropics as well. This large fern keeps its leaves all year. Useful Tropical Plants gives a height of about 8.2 feet (2.5 metres). Its fronds, or fern leaves, can reach 9.8 feet (3 metres) long. These sizes refer to height and frond length, not spread. The sources give no width for a full-grown plant.

Leather fern grows in marshes and near mangrove swamps. It grows inside these wet places, not just at their edges. It grows on flooded ground in fresh or partly salty water. The source shows parts that bear spores near the frond tips. It also shows spores on the backs of fronds. These are the parts shown that help the fern reproduce. The account gives no details of flowers or fruit. It says little about stems or how the leaves feel.

When grown in a garden, this fern needs bright, filtered light. The light needs to pass through a filter before reaching the leaves. Keep the ground moist; do not let it dry between waterings. Its wild sites and care needs suit a wet planting site. It needs warmth, as it cannot live through frost. The evidence gives no numbered zone for its cold tolerance. Plants can grow in salty or fresh conditions. Young plants can cope with a change between the two. Older plants grow used to one set of conditions. A later change in salt levels may kill them.

People grow leather fern for its looks in gardens. They also gather wild plants for food and thatch. Records note the use of very young leaves raw and cooked. Useful Tropical Plants rates its food use two out of five. That source found no reports that this species is toxic. This does not prove that every part is safe to eat. Its warning deals with harmful substances in some other ferns. It does not confirm that leather fern has those substances.

People use dried fronds to make thatched roofs. They fix them to rods in place of straw. They may mix them with leaves of Parinari laurinum. The source records no known use as medicine. The evidence for this species names no pests or diseases.