Pteris vittata 'Benzilan' is a 2005 Plant Delights/JLBG introduction of an amazing fern selection from our 1996 Yunnan, China expedition. Growing on a dry rocky cliff, this form of Pteris vittata was spindly and less than 1' tall, but in our garden it has made a stunning deciduous clump 3' tall x 8' wide in 10 years in part to full sun. Each dark green frond boasts stunning, simple leaflets on a magnificent deer-resistant clump. Pteris 'Benzilan' is the first Zone 7b hardy form of what is typically a far less hardy species. Pteris vittata 'Benzilan' will come up from spores that land in inhospitable places such as rock walls and other limestone outcrops. A regular renaissance plant, Pteris vittata is becoming widely used as a bioremediation plant to clean arsenic-laced soils...a whole new market!
