An Introduction to the Morphological Characteristics and Cultivation Value of Golden Ladder Fern

Golden Ladder Fern (Pteris multifida) is a perennial evergreen fern in the family Pteridaceae and the genus Pteris, also known as the well-side brake and well-mouth brake. Its slender leaves are pinnately divided and shaped like the tail feathers of a phoenix, which is how it got its name. It is widely distributed in southern China, often growing wild in damp, shady places such as the edges of wells, cracks in walls, stream banks and under forest slopes.

The Golden Ladder Fern is not a tall plant; its fronds grow in clusters from the base and fall into two types: sterile fronds and fertile fronds. The sterile fronds are relatively broad and short, with finely serrated edges; the fertile fronds are slender and upright, with recurved leaf margins that enclose the sori, which turn brown when mature. Its underground part is a short, small rhizome covered with brown scales.

For cultivation, the Golden Ladder Fern prefers a warm, moist, semi-shaded environment and dislikes direct strong light and prolonged drought in the soil. For container growing, choose a loose, fertile, well-drained humus soil, keep the potting soil moist at ordinary times, and spray water on the leaves and around the plant to raise air humidity, otherwise the leaf edges tend to turn yellow and dry up. During the vigorous growing season, a moderate amount of dilute liquid fertilizer can be applied, and in winter take care to protect it from the cold and keep it warm, placing it in a bright spot indoors.

The Golden Ladder Fern has delicate leaf shapes and stays green all year round, giving it strong ornamental value; it is suitable for container growing to accent interiors, and can also be planted in shady, damp corners of a courtyard such as rockeries and wall bases. In addition, its whole plant can be used medicinally, and traditional Chinese medicine considers it to have effects such as clearing heat and draining dampness and cooling the blood to stop bleeding, but it must be used under the guidance of a professional physician and should not be taken casually on one's own.