Acrosticum - An Inhabitant Of Mangroves

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Acrosticum is found wherever there are mangrove swamps. It can form its own thickets, and live in thickets of a low-growing chip palm or among thickets of other mangrove plants. It is also believed that this fern takes root well in lakes with swamps and in all areas that previously received water from sea tides, but later turned out to be cut off from them. Large tetrahedral spores of the acrosticum are capable of germinating in a wide variety of conditions. Sometimes this handsome man is found even in coastal zones on rocks, but this plant does not grow to a solid size in this case. As for the cultivation of acrosticum in aquariums, only gigantic containers are suitable for this

Getting to know the plant

On average, the height of this massive fern, representing the Pteris family, is one and a half to two meters, and sometimes it can reach four meters. Acrosticum is endowed with incredibly massive, straight and ascending rhizomes, completely covered with scales and allowing it to perfectly adhere to the substrate. Quite fleshy roots extend from all rhizomes.

Sterile acrosticum leaves practically do not differ from fertile ones - both are pinnate, equipped with a huge number of stomata on the surfaces, reticular venation and whole large segments.

In nature, there are several varieties of this genus, which differ from each other in their morphological structure. The most famous are the graceful acrostichum and the golden acrosticum.

Acrosticum graceful It is a tussock-growing fern with reddish-brown leaf axes. The length of its feathery dull green leaves reaches one and a half meters. The width of narrow-pointed sterile feathers is 2.5 - 3.5 cm, and their length is about ten to fifteen centimeters. The fertile feathers of the graceful acrosticum tapering to the tops will be slightly smaller and endowed with dots protruding by about 0.5 cm.

Acrosticum golden, often found in the tidal zone, reaches a size of the order of 1, 2 - 1, 8 m. Its bizarre feathery leaves often bend around the entire perimeter. They are leathery, thick, rising towards the center. In width, they grow up to 12 - 50 cm, and in length - up to a meter or more. Above, the leaves of the acrosticum are golden golden-green, and below they are painted in lighter shades. The leaf lobes are often equipped with wavy edges. This fern species was first described in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus. The golden acrosticum also has other names - "golden skin", marsh fern and mangrove fern.

How to grow

Acrosticum is an excellent plant for decorating aquariums. As soon as its height reaches ten centimeters or more, it can immediately be used for this purpose. For this unusual aquatic beauty is placed in the water vertically in relation to the bottom surface. The design of aquariums will look much more advantageous if you combine the acrosticum with other aquarium vegetation.

By the way, acrosticum is not always able to withstand prolonged immersion in water, but its roots still need constant moisture. Golden acrosticum can also be grown in paludariums or freshwater low aquariums, securely fixing its powerful rhizomes in the ground with hairpins. The water temperature in aquariums should be between eighteen and twenty-four degrees. In aquariums, the golden acrosticum is usually placed in the middle or foreground.

Acrosticum reproduces by spores, which germinate best in fresh water. Large spores of tetrahedral shape make it possible for its reproduction even in the greenhouses of botanical gardens. Sometimes the rhizomes of the acrosticum can form several plants from dormant buds, which can also be safely separated as soon as the height of their leaves reaches eight to ten centimeters.