tree fern

American  

noun

1. any of various ferns, mostly tropical and chiefly of the family Cyatheaceae, that attain the size of trees, sending up a straight trunklike stem with foliage at the summit.

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tree fern British  

noun

1. any of numerous large tropical ferns, mainly of the family Cyatheaceae , having a trunklike stem bearing fronds at the top

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Etymology

Origin of tree fern

First recorded in 1840–50

Example Sentences

These contained large quantities of tree ferns, but also other types of plants, and charcoal.

From Science Daily

The most similar modern counterpart might be Dicksonia antarctica, a type of tree fern native to Australasia, but popular in Britain as an ornamental plant.

From BBC

In the rainforests of western Panama, the plant biologist Jim Dalling stumbled upon some tree ferns with six-foot-long leaves that bent to the ground as they were dying, encircling the plant like a skirt.

From New York Times

"And so the tree ferns seem to be putting out tentacles to sample the surrounding soils," Dalling said.

From Science Daily

But it is not clear why tree ferns would keep so much genetic material; most flowering plants return to slimmer genomes after duplications.

From Scientific American