Cultivar
Platycerium bifurcatum 'Popcorn'
Popcorn
- Latin
- Platycerium bifurcatum 'Popcorn'
- Chinese
- 爆米花
- Japanese
- ポップコーン
- English
- Popcorn
Parent species
Platycerium bifurcatumcommon staghorn fern
Popcorn is a trade name for a selection of Platycerium bifurcatum, with markedly upright fertile fronds whose forked tips burst open like popcorn. PlatyWiki records it as a Taiwanese nursery's pick from bifurcatum sporelings, which we have not checked further. With bifurcatum behind it, it is easy to grow; it comes as tissue culture and as sporelings, and sporelings are offspring that may not look the same.
Care notes
What the name refers to
Popcorn is a trade name for a selection of Platycerium bifurcatum. It is a trade name, not a registered cultivar. Labels in Taiwan, Japan, Korea and Europe all read P. bifurcatum 'Popcorn', and we found no claim that it is a hybrid. PlatyWiki records it as picked from bifurcatum sporelings at a Taiwanese nursery and named by the owner; we have not checked that history further.
How to recognise it
- Markedly upright fertile fronds: both the Taiwanese and the Korean descriptions mention this.
- Forked tips that burst open like popcorn: the Taiwanese account says the fertile fronds fork at the ends into diamond-like shapes, which is where the name comes from.
- A European seller describes wavy or curled fertile fronds and a compact habit, and a Korean seller says the shield fronds are deeply lobed; each of these comes from a single source.
The popular description of fronds "piled up layer on layer like a bowl of popcorn" has no source we could find, so we do not use it as an identifying feature.
Care
With bifurcatum behind it, it is easy and forgiving: bright, diffuse light, good airflow, water thoroughly once the medium is dry; it copes with swings in light and temperature. For upright fertile fronds, give it plenty of light; with too little, the fronds stretch and droop and the upright look goes. In a cold snap, treat it as you would bifurcatum.
Tissue culture and sporelings are different things
Popcorn is a selection of one plant. Tissue-cultured plants are copies of it and more predictable; sporelings are its offspring, segregate, and may not grow up looking like the mother. The plants we found in Taiwan were mostly labelled sporelings or seed-grown, while Japan, Korea and the United States mostly offer tissue culture, and Japan has pups as well.
Three questions before you buy
- How was it propagated? Tissue culture, sporeling, or pup.
- Can you see a mature plant? A two-inch seedling shows neither the upright habit nor the burst tips, so ask for photos of the mother or of mature plants from the same batch.
- What does the label say? If it only says "Popcorn" without the propagation method, ask before you buy.
FAQ
Is Popcorn a bifurcatum?
Yes. Labels everywhere read P. bifurcatum 'Popcorn'; it is a bifurcatum selection, and we found no claim that it is a hybrid. PlatyWiki records it as picked from bifurcatum sporelings at a Taiwanese nursery and named by the owner, which we have not checked further.
How do Popcorn tissue culture and sporelings differ?
Tissue-cultured plants are copies of one plant and grow up closer to the mother; sporelings are Popcorn's offspring, segregate, and may not develop the upright fronds and burst tips. Ask how the plant was propagated before you buy, and ask for photos of the mother or of mature plants from the same batch.
Other cultivars of the same species
Names selected from the same wild species, usually compared side by side.