Requires a well-drained position and lots of old mortar rubble in the soil. Requires a humid atmosphere and some shade. A good plant for growing on a shady part of an old dry-stone or brick wall, also succeeding in full sun. A very ornamental fern, it is very tough but slow to establish. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer.

None known

Spores - best sown as soon as they are ripe on the surface of a humus-rich sterilized soil. Keep the compost moist, preferably by putting a plastic bag over the pot. Germinates in spring. Spring sown spores germinate in 1 - 3 months at 15°c. Pot on small clumps of plantlets into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse. Keep the plants humid until they are well established. Once the plants are 15cm or more tall, plant them out into their permanent positions in the spring. Division in spring.

Old walls and basic rocks in hilly areas.