Lemon Button Fern Identification Guide
How to recognize the Lemon Button Fern (Nephrolepis cordifolia 'Duffii'), a dainty sword-fern cultivar with round leaflets and a faint lemon scent.
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Key Identifying Features
The Lemon Button Fern is a compact cultivar of the sword fern, Nephrolepis cordifolia 'Duffii'. It is loved for its small, round, closely spaced leaflets lined neatly along upright-arching fronds, and for the faint lemon fragrance released when the foliage is handled.
- Dainty fronds with rounded, button-like leaflets
- Leaflets closely spaced, alternating along a green stem
- Upright then gently arching habit, 8-14 inches
- Faint lemon scent when brushed or crushed
Leaves & Stems
Fronds are once-pinnate, narrow, and lined with many small (about 1/4 inch) rounded leaflets set so close together they nearly overlap, giving a beaded or scalloped ribbon look. New growth is bright lime green, maturing to medium green. Unlike the true Button Fern, the stems (rachises) are green, not dark and wiry.
The plant forms a tidy clump and may send out thin runners (stolons), characteristic of Nephrolepis. The leaflets feel slightly leathery and the whole frond stays narrow and delicate.
Flowers & Fruit
No flowers or seeds are produced. Reproduction is by spores in round sori on the undersides of the leaflets, near the margins, often covered by a small indusium. The lemon scent comes from the foliage itself, not from any flower.
How to Tell It Apart from Look-Alikes
- True Button Fern (Pellaea rotundifolia): Has dark wiry reddish stems and fewer, more widely spaced leaflets; the Lemon Button Fern has green stems, crowded leaflets, and a lemon scent.
- Boston fern (N. exaltata): Much larger with longer, frillier fronds; the Lemon Button Fern is a miniature by comparison.
- Other Nephrolepis cultivars: The combination of round leaflets, small size, and lemon fragrance is distinctive to 'Duffii'.
Where You'll Find It
A popular terrarium, tabletop, and small hanging-basket fern, it tolerates household conditions better than many ferns and stays conveniently small. It prefers bright indirect light, even moisture, and decent humidity.
Quick ID Checklist
- Small, round, closely spaced leaflets
- Green rachis (not dark/wiry)
- Narrow upright-arching fronds, under ~14 inches
- Faint lemon scent when handled
- Round sori under leaflets; thin runners present
If you have a small fern with crowded round leaflets on green stems and a hint of lemon when brushed, it is a Lemon Button Fern.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Lemon Button Fern really smell like lemon?
Yes, it gives off a faint, fresh lemon scent when the fronds are brushed or crushed, which is one of its most distinctive identifying traits.
How is it different from the regular Button Fern?
The Lemon Button Fern (Nephrolepis cordifolia 'Duffii') has green stems, crowded round leaflets, and a lemon scent. The true Button Fern (Pellaea rotundifolia) has dark wiry reddish stems with more widely spaced leaflets and no scent.
How big does it get?
It stays compact, generally 8-14 inches tall, making it ideal for terrariums, tabletops, and small hanging baskets.
Is it a type of Boston fern?
It is a close relative, a cultivar of Nephrolepis cordifolia rather than Nephrolepis exaltata, but it is a miniature member of the same sword-fern group as the Boston fern.