[K Randall]

Java ferns

As Cavan mentioned, I have the "old fashion" small Java fern that has been in the hobby since before I was involved in the hobby.<g> This is certainly NOT 1-2" in good conditions, but it is WAY smaller than the typical large forms. As a gauge to how big it might get in your tanks, I would estimate that it is reliably no more than 1/3 the height of the "normal" types under the same conditions. Besides size, another difference between this fern and "normal" pteropus is that even in very, very old stands, you never see trilobate leaves developing. I have grown this fern in the same tans as the larger types for over 15 years and can reliably tell the difference between them. I don't know the species, but the consensus among experts is that this little one is probably NOT pteropus.

I've never heard this type labeled as "dwarf" though, so I don't know if it's what you're looking for.

Karen

 

[K Randall]

While it is certainly possible that some growers are working on Java fern cultivars, there is also a great deal of variability in the wild plants. That does not make them different species BTW... New England Asters are incredibly variable in the wild, ranging from tall plants with pale lavender flowers to short, ground hugging types with deep purple flowers.

Even before Windelov and Tropica Java ferns were commercially available, Claus Christensen and I discussed them. He told me that while these very like did "develop" in the Tropica greenhouses, they were NOT an intentional cultivar. Someone there just happened to notice a few plants with a different growth pattern among a collection of plants that were being propagated in the normal way. They took advantage of what nature had done for them, and continued to propagate these "fancy" varieties. But they did not set out to intentionally produce a "different" Java fern.

As far as narrow leaf Javas are concerned, there are many. Again, I had the opportunity to see a number of slightly different types at Tropica. Most were wild-collected plants, all had different attributes. Some won't grow under water, others do, but so slowly that they are not commerncially viable. The trick, when bringing a new plant to market, is to find plants that are successful under "normal" tank conditions, AND that can be propagated quickly enough to meet market demand. There are many fewer that meet these criteria.

There are a number of already discovered Microsorum species besides pteropus, though it is not clear how many of these can withstand permanently submersed conditions. How many of the types of "Java fern" currently in the hobby are truly M. pteropus, and which ones might be a different Microsorum sp. is open to speculation until a taxonomist wants to take the genus on as a pet project.<g>

Karen