Polypodiodes niponica

(Mett.) Ching

PolypodiaceaeLeaves

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(c) 江国彬, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

What to Eat

Edible parts: Leaves, Fronds

Young leaves and fronds are cooked as a vegetable, though they have a notably bitter taste.

Where to Find It

It is a tropical plant. It grows attached to trees or rocks. In southern China it occurs between 300-1,800 m above sea level. In Sichuan and Yunnan.

Asia, China, India, Japan, Northeastern India, SE Asia, Taiwan, Tibet, Vietnam,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Brunei, Bhutan, China, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mongolia, Maldives, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, Philippines, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen

How to Identify

A fern. It has a long creeping rhizome. It is grey-green and 5 mm across. It has a whitish bloom and scales. The stalk is straw coloured and 5-15 cm long. It is hairy. The blades are oblong to sword shaped and have teeth along the edge. It is 30-40 c, long by 10-13 cm wide and divided along the stalk. There are 15-25 pairs of segments 3-5 cm long by 1 cm wide. The blades are hairy especially underneath.

Names & Synonyms

Polypodiodes amamiana (Tagawa) SaikiPolypodium niponicum Mett.and others

References (1)

Liu, Y., et al, 2012, Food uses of ferns in China: a review. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae 84(4): 263-270

What to Eat

Where to Find It

How to Identify

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