Sphenomeris chinensis
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Pala'ā plant
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Pala'ā spore
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Pala'ā frond
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Sphenomeris chinensis
Pala'ā, palapala'ā, pā'ū o Pala'e, lace fern
General description
- Range/habitat: Indigenous, medium-sized, terrestrial, finely cut, common in mesic to wet forests, grasslands and shrublands and along streamsides, 40-1310m one of the most common and widespread native ferns in Hawaii
- Habit: fern
- Mature height: 1-3 feet, 2 feet spread
- Fronds: 3-pinnate-pinnatifid to 4-pinnate fronds with narrow, wedge-shaped ultimate segments
- Flowers/inflorescence: N/A
- Spores: sori elongate on tips of ultimate segements; indusia pocketlike (attached at base and sides)
- Planting conditions:
- Pests:
- Uses:
- Notes
plant was sacred to Hawaiian hula goddess Laka and was used to decorate the altar in the halau hula; also was used for variety of female disorders
- References
Palmer, Daniel D., Hawai'i's Ferns and Fern Allies. Honolulu: UH Press, 2003.
