Trichomanes elegans
A terrestrial filmy fern of the dark floor of lowland tropical rainforest from Central America to Brazil, known for the blue iridescence of its fronds, caused by specialised plastids adapted to very low light. It needs near-saturated air, deep shade and steady warmth, which in practice means a sealed terrarium.
Where it grows wild
Grows on the shaded, humid floor of wet lowland and lower montane rainforest, often near streams; the very thin fronds dry out within minutes in open air.
Recorded at 0–1,902 m, median about 380 m.
🔒 Growing it like that
The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:
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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY 4.0 licence, unmodified.