Davallia mariesii ("Shinobu")

Japanese name: シノブ （忍）
Scientific name: Davallia mariesii

[Overview]
A summergreen fern that grows on tree trunks, rocks and the like, although plants south of Okinawa are said to be evergreen.
A thick rhizome covered with scales spreads, branching as it goes.
The scales are grayish brown to brown and linear-lanceolate.
The fronds are triangular-ovate, 10–20 cm long and 8–15 cm wide, finely divided 3–4 times pinnately, hairless, slightly glossy and hard.
The leaf stalk is 5–15 cm long.
One sorus is borne at the tip of each lobe, and the indusium is cup-shaped.

[Uses]
The rhizome is used medicinally.
Plants trained as "tsuri-shinobu" or "shinobu-dama" have been admired since the Edo period.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by division or cuttings.
It prefers partial shade and an environment with high air humidity.
Grow it with the rhizome wrapped around sphagnum moss or attached to a tree fern board.
If using soil, a well-drained soil for mountain and field plants is suitable.
As a guide for watering, do not let the roots dry out, and misting the leaves is also advisable.
If the air humidity is high, it tolerates some drying of the planting medium.
After the leaves fall, keep it somewhat on the dry side.
Fertilizer is not particularly necessary, but a small amount of diluted liquid fertilizer may be given after division or in spring.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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