Alsophila woollsiana
F. von Mueller
Woolly tree fern
gbif· cc-by
Herbrecs
gbif· cc-by
GBIF
gbif· cc-by
Herbrecs
Description
A stout tree fern. It grows to 6-7 m tall. The trunk is woody and 15-18 cm across. The fronds are 2 m long by 0.6 m wide. They are shiny green and finely divided. They are usually divided twice. The stalks are pale brown and covered with warts and bristly scales. The base remain and may stick out from the trunk. The spore groups are in 2 rows.
Edible Uses
The soft growing tip at the top of the trunk can be cooked and eaten after washing to remove tannins. Young fronds are also eaten, though harvesting the trunk tip kills the plant.
Traditional Uses
The soft growing tip at the top of the trunk can be cooked and eaten. It is washed to remove tannins. This would kill the plant. The young fronds are also eaten.
Distribution
A tropical plant. It grows naturally in the rainforests of Northeast Queensland in Australia. It needs a shady protected position. It grows up to 1200 m altitude. It will grow in cooler places. It suits hardiness zones 9-11.
Where It Grows
Australia*,
Cultivation
It can be grown from spores.
Notes
There are about 800 Cyathea species.
Synonyms
References (9)
- Andrews, S.B., 1990, Ferns of Queensland. A handbook to the ferns and fern allies. Queensland DPI p 112 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Beasley, J., 2011, Plants of Tropical North Queensland - the compact guide. Footloose publications. p 115 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 310 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Cronin, L., 1989, The Concise Australian Flora. Reed. p 289 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Cundall, P., (ed.), 2004, Gardening Australia: flora: the gardener's bible. ABC Books. p 448 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
Show all 9 references Hide references
- Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 78 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Large, M.F., & Braggins, J.E., 2004, Tree Ferns. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, Australia. p 279 Plate 99 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Leiper, G & Houser, J., Mutooroo. Plant Use by Australian Aboriginal People. Assembly press, Queensland. (As Cyathea woollsiana)
- Townsend, K., 1994, Across the Top. Gardening with Australian Plants in the tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p 151 (As Cyathea woollsiana)
