Staghorn-spores looks like this at the following photograph.
{{gwi:615822}}
It is easy to sprout out the spores. They are ripe when they are brown and you can sprout out them in a little plastic beaker with 1 cm sandy soil. Water the soil and put a cover on the beaker. Than you have to wait 6 to 8 weeks till you can see the prothalli. You can have a look at the spore-reproduction at my homepage:
http://www.farngarten.de/e_farnentwicklung.htm
regards
Athyriana

Thank you, Athyriana. That's what mine look like, but they are more like light brown. Your spores appear more reddish brown, at least on my computer.

Are there hundreds or thousands of tiny spores there? Have you ever seen the size of one spore? I'm asking these questions so I can share a bit with the 2nd graders.

Also, when you use the beaker, do you scrape the spores off, or just put a slice of the leaf in there, spores up?

Thanks for all your help.

(nice CP's what kind of nep is that, and the sundews preaty neat!) so if i wanted to grow some Ferns? could i just purchas spores some wear or would you recomend buying a fern first?

Cheers

I don't know where you would buy spores. Buying growing ferns would be easiest, I would think.

Hello

I try to answer your questions. I enclose a photo from platycerium spores, I don't know how the enlargement of the photo, but I think at least it is 100 times greater as eyes can see, rather moore. I hope it is possible for you to understand my english. Unfortunately it is not so good. It is very difficult for me to translate my thoughts. :-)

One frond is covered from millions of spores, not only thousands.

For reproduction you do the fern-frond on a white paper when sporescases brown but still closed, than wait some days. Spores will be falling out when fronds are dry. Then you can sow them at the soil. They looks like brown powder.

regards
Athyriana
www.farngarten.de

{{gwi:615824}}

Thank you Athyriana. We understand you completely. Thank you for helping.

What planting medium can I use? can I use coconut coir chunks? or ground up coconut coir?

I was curious how do I transfer or transplant to a tree or whatever? and when? lol

We have a Staghorn fern and the leaves are starting to produce those spores but they are light colored at the moment not dark as in the photo.

You can buy staghorn spores, and other types, thru the Los Angeles International Fern Society but you must be a member. So saying, I am wondering if they are still in existence - I haven't had a copy of their magazine in months although I sent them an E mail inquiry. Does anybody know where I could find spores of cryptosorus?

Wow, old thread! I actually did sprout some of the staghorn spores on top of soil in a plastic cup of soil with saran wrap over the top. I cannot remember anything else about how or when I did it. I do remember that once they sprouted I didn't know what to do with them and probably dumped them back into the soil.

You're right, I hadn't noiced how old this thread was, I guess I am a little late to be giving advice now.

woebegonia, by Cryptosorus do you mean 'Ctenopteris heterophylla'? Cryptosorus is a less common species syn for the same. LAIFS has an excellent selection, though some of their spore is dated(old). I would suggest goiong to fern growers where the species is native. I believe in this case NZ.
Although this suggestion is unlikely to help in the case of P.q. Perhaps you might consider H. 'African Oddity' which, by my account, is a more easily cultivated sport of P.q.

+I was thinking of the little so-called walking fern, camptosorus rhizopyllus with heart shaped frond and long trailing tip. I found some online last spring from, I think, Tennessee, but they didn't handle spring and summer heat as well as I had hoped, I doubt they survived, I wish I had kept one indoors as a house fern. I was thinking I might have done better to grow from spores if they were available. Yes, LAIFS does have old spores, I've only had one failure from them, though. Their biggest drawback is that it takes forever for them to cash a check in payment. . . .

I went online to look for camptosorus, it looks as though it has a synonym, Asplenium rhizophyllum, which is not listed in my book by Barbara Joe Hoshizaki, but it's a l975 edition.

Barbara Joe's newer Fern Growers Manual is a huge improvement from the original. Loads of good info with the fewest words. The line drawings are exceptional. And well worth the cost. I tried growing camptosorus r. last spring, with no luck. It may be one of many really tricky ferns to grow outside their normal range.

Thanks Houston, I will look for that book, 35 years out of date is a long time.

Spores of many exotic species can also be purchased directly from Ebay.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ebay Platycerium spores