Cultivar
Platycerium veitchii 'Auburn River'
Auburn River
- Latin
- Platycerium veitchii 'Auburn River'
- Chinese
- 澳銀
- Japanese
- オーバーンリバー
- English
- Auburn River
Parent species
Platycerium veitchiisilver staghorn fern
Auburn River is not a bred selection but a locality form of wild Platycerium veitchii from the Auburn River area of Queensland. It is prized for its silver and its tall, spiky crown, but whether the crown rises depends on conditions: strong light, cool temperatures and a wide day-night swing. In hot, humid lowland Taiwan it often grows short and round instead.
Care notes
What the name refers to
Auburn River is a locality form of Platycerium veitchii: the trade name for the wild population around Auburn River National Park in Queensland, Australia. That makes it unlike Jade Girl or Jenny, which are individuals somebody picked out — there is no selector here, only a place.
It is still a trade name, not a registered cultivar. We checked the Queensland herbarium and found no voucher specimen under the Auburn River name, and we could not trace the online claim that "DNA sequencing has confirmed a distinct population", so we do not repeat it.
The appeal: silver and a spiky crown
The fertile fronds are narrow and upright under a thick coat of silver-white stellate hairs, and on a mature plant the tops of the shield fronds rise into a tall, spiky crown. That crown is what collectors want from Auburn River, and also the hardest thing to grow.
Whether the crown rises depends on conditions
Growers in Taiwan have an easy rule: wherever roses grow well, Auburn River will make its crown. Taiwan's roses are mostly grown in the mountains, with strong sun, cool temperatures and a clear day-night swing — very close to the plant's native conditions. Broken down, that is four things:
- Sustained cool with a temperature swing — not one cool day but a whole period. Lowland Taiwan only gets this in autumn and winter, which is why autumn is treated as the crown-building season.
- Plenty of light. It is a high-light species; without enough, the fronds will not stand and the crown will not rise. Midday summer sun in Taiwan still needs some shade.
- Restraint with water. It is drought tolerant and likes a free-draining, airy mount: loosely packed moss, a thinner board, and soaks that are neither deep nor long.
- Do not stop feeding during the growing season. Some growers also use lights at night to lengthen the day and push the crown.
The other way round: given only heat, humidity and too little light, Auburn River readily grows into a low, rounded "round face". That is not poor care so much as missing conditions. The more striking the crown on an individual, the fussier it tends to be, so change its conditions gradually rather than pushing a vigorous plant into decline.
How it differs from 'Lemoinei'
Both sit under veitchii but pull in opposite directions: Lemoinei is greener, more divided and thinner in silver, while silver and crown are exactly Auburn River's point. Choose Auburn River for silver, Lemoinei for division.
Three questions before you buy
- Where was the mother-plant photo taken? A tall crown grown in the mountains or a cooled room may not reappear on a lowland balcony.
- How was it propagated? A pup is the same individual; a sporeling segregates.
- Has the name travelled with the plant? A locality name is the easiest to attach to an ordinary veitchii.
FAQ
How is Auburn River different from an ordinary veitchii?
It is a locality form of veitchii from the Auburn River area of Australia, not a separately bred selection, so biologically it is veitchii. In the trade the difference is in expression: thicker silver and a mature plant that readily throws a tall spiky crown. We found no voucher specimen or genetic study supporting the idea of a distinct population, so judge any plant by the mature form you can see.
Why does my Auburn River have no crown and look round?
Usually the conditions are missing, not the plant. Building the crown needs sustained cool with a day-night swing and plenty of light; in hot, humid lowland Taiwan with too little light it often grows a low, round "round face". It usually improves once autumn and winter bring the temperature swing — give it strong light, restrain the water, keep feeding in the growing season, and wait a few flushes.
Can Auburn River be grown in lowland Taiwan?
Keeping it alive is no problem: veitchii is the most sun- and drought-tolerant species in the genus and a bright lowland balcony suits it well. The hard part is the tall crown, which needs cool temperatures and a temperature swing that lowland Taiwan only provides in autumn and winter. If you want a crown, accept that it will grow rounder for part of the year.
Other cultivars of the same species
Names selected from the same wild species, usually compared side by side.