Cyathea smithiiSoft Tree Fern, Katote A medium-sized tree fern that can produce a slender trunk to 8 m (27 ft.) tall but usually stays considerably smaller. It holds a spreading crown of flat, tripinnate fronds on profusely scaly leafstalks. The stalks persist on the trunk and can form a skirt below the crown. Cyathea smithii is native to cool montane and lowland forests on the North and South Islands of New Zealand, as well as Stewart Island, the Chatham Islands and the subantarctic Auckland Islands far to the south, which makes it the worlds most southerly occurring tree fern. Perfectly adapted to the cool and humid conditions of its habitat, it does not like heat and in fact is less tolerant of it than other tree ferns from comparable habitats, such as Dicksonia antarctica. It does tolerate moderate freezes and is one of the hardiest tree ferns, although, however, it is not quite as hardy as D. antarctica or D. fibrosa. | 
