Dicksonia should not be confused with Dickinsonia.
Dicksonia is a genus of tree ferns in the order Cyatheales. It is regarded as related to Cyathea, but is considered to retain more primitive traits, dating back at least to the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The fossil record includes stems, pinnules, and spores.
The genus contains 20–25 species, distributed from Mexico to Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Chile, St. Helena, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Australia, Indonesia, New Guinea, and the Philippines. New Guinea has the greatest diversity, with five species.
Species of Dicksonia found in cultivation include:
The genus was first described by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1788. The name honors James Dickson, a prominent nurseryman and botanist.[1]
Plants of the World Online as of recognizes the following species:[2]
| Image | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Dicksonia amorosoana | Philippines (Mindanao) | |
| Dicksonia antarctica, soft tree fern, Tasmanian tree fern | Australia | |
| Dicksonia arborescens | St. Helena | |
| Dicksonia archboldii | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia baudouinii | New Caledonia | |
| Dicksonia berteroana | Juan Fernández Islands | |
| Dicksonia blumei | Indonesia, Philippines | |
| Dicksonia brackenridgei | Fiji, Samoa | |
| Dicksonia celebica | Sulawesi. | |
| Dicksonia ceramica | Maluku (Seram) | |
| Dicksonia externa | Juan Fernández Islands | |
| Dicksonia fibrosa, woolly tree fern, kuripaka or wheki-ponga | New Zealand | |
| Dicksonia grandis | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia herbertii | Northeastern Queensland, Australia | |
| Dicksonia hieronymi | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia karsteniana | Mexico to Venezuela and Bolivia | |
| Dicksonia lanata | Tuokuro. New Zealand | |
| Dicksonia lanigera | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia lehnertiana | Colombia | |
| Dicksonia mollis | Indonesia | |
| Dicksonia munzingeri | Solomon Islands to New Caledonia. | |
| Dicksonia perriei | New Caledonia | |
| Dicksonia sciurus | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia sellowiana, xaxim, samambaiuçu (in Portuguese) | Southern Mexico through Central America and Northern South America to Bolivia and Uruguay | |
| Dicksonia squarrosa, rough tree fern, slender tree fern, New Zealand tree fern, wheki | New Zealand | |
| Dicksonia stuebelii | Northern Peru | |
| Dicksonia thyrsopteroides | New Caledonia | |
| Dicksonia timorensis | Lesser Sunda Islands (Timor) | |
| Dicksonia utteridgei | New Guinea | |
| Dicksonia youngiae, bristly tree fern | Australia | |
Other species include: