Fern Grows Rare-Earth Monazite Crystals

Scientists report that the tropical fern Blechnum orientale not only hyperaccumulates rare-earth elements but actually forms monazite crystals inside its tissues.
Using high-resolution microscopy and chemical analysis, researchers found self-organized mineral growth enriched in neodymium, lanthanum and cerium, appearing as a “chemical garden” within plant cells.
Monazite normally requires geologic heat and pressure to crystallize; its formation under ambient biological conditions points to a previously unknown pathway for rare-earth mineralization.
The discovery strengthens interest in phytomining—using metal-tolerant plants to extract critical elements for wind turbines, electronics and medical devices—by showing plants can yield mineral phases that are chemically useful rather than only dispersed ions.
Practical hurdles remain: researchers must develop methods to recover monazite from plant biomass and separate component rare-earths without excessive loss or environmental impact, and it is unclear how widespread this capability is among other species.
Early signs hint at similar behavior in another fern, Dicranopteris linearis, but direct evidence is pending. The work, published in Environmental Science & Technology, opens new avenues for sustainable rare-earth sourcing if technical challenges can be solved.