Common Names

• The name fern pine makes reference to the plant's leaves. As it's neither a true fern nor a true pine, "fern pine" alludes to the plant being a conifer --- cone-bearing --- but with broader leaves that are not needles but flattened blades that look like spears or tapered ovals. Usually the name fern pine is used for any member of the Podocarpaceae family that bears thin leaves. Visually, these thin leaves on branches visually create a frilly texture, and the leaves are flexible and soft to the touch. Sometimes, a fern pine is also interchangeably called a podocarp, yew pine or yellowwood. In some parts of the world, they are also called black or brown pines.
  
  

Dual Identity

• Plants called fern pines are mainly in the genus Podocarpus, which comprises approximately 100 species of evergreen trees native to forest habitats of the tropics and warm temperate zones. In 1989, a conifer taxonomist separated many species out of the genus Podocarpus and placed them in a new genus named Afrocarpus. Not all taxonomists accepted or understood this segregation. This led to many books and articles using either or both genus names when referring to the same plant. An excellent example of this synonym usage is Podocarpus gracilior and Afrocarpus gracilior. Both refer to the same fern pine species, but the latter is the most current and accurate botanical classification.
  
  

Name Insight

• Although horticulturists and gardeners may interchangeably and loosely use the names podocarp, fern pine or yellowwood, the trend since the beginning of the 21st century is to use fern pine only for plants in the genus Afrocarpus. This is not a steadfast rule, as there are many trees in the genus Podocarpus with smooth, narrow leaves that look very much like plants in Afrocarpus. Often, if the plant is in the Podocarpus genus, it more likely will be called a podocarp or yellowwood. Common names are not universal, and there is no guideline for what a plant may be called in a nonscientific way.
  
  

Plant Gender

• Among the vast majority of Afrocarpus and Podocarpus, trees are either male or female in gender, as determined by the types of cones produced. Male trees bear small beige or tan fingerlike cones in large numbers on branches. The cones shed pollen into the wind. Female trees yield fewer cones on branch tips that resemble fleshy scales. Once pollinated, the female cone develops into a berrylike receptacle with a seed inside. The female cone looks green when immature, but ripens to black to powdery blue.