2022 Volume 48 Issue 2 Pages 386-390
As feeding damage and trampling of green slopes by Japanese sika deer have increased and become widespread, the introduction of deer unpalatable plants into revegetation has attracted attention. The authors are studying methods of propagation and cultivation for greening with downy ground fern (Hypolepis punctata), a plant species not preferred by deer. This study investigated the possibility that multiple strains exist in downy ground fern. Rhizomes of downy ground fern collected from three different mountain forests were used to investigate whether there were special characteristic differences in terms of pot seedling propagation and post-planting growth. Tests were performed on the number of buds available for making pot seedlings, the germination rate of buds, seedling height, and above- and below-ground growth after pot seedlings were planted, with only the number of buds showing statistically significant differences among these characteristics. This suggested that a lineage may exist in downy ground fern.
