Plant in bright light (even tolerates full sun in coastal areas) in a well-drained soil and provide regular irrigation. Irrigation can be applied to the trunk as well as the surrounding soil but avoid watering the crown as this enhances conditions that promote diseases such as Rhizoctonia or Tip Blight (Phyllosticta). Tip blight has become a more prevalent disease of tree ferns in southern California and seriously disfigures the new growth and older foliage. Given optimum conditions this plant can grow several feet per year and reach 20 feet tall. It is hardy to about 20 degrees F.

Cyathea cooperi is native to New South Wales and Queensland, Australia. Though many still list this plant as correctly being a species of Cyathea, the current name for this species in the Kew database is Sphaeropteris cooperi. We previously listed Sphaeropteris cooperi as its correct from 1986 to 1993 and prior to this, starting in 1980, we listed this plant under another older name, Alsophila cooperi. The name for the genus comes from a combination of the Latin word 'sphaera' meaning a "sphere" or "globe" and the Greek word 'pteris' meaning a "fern" and the name Cyathea comes the Greek word 'kyatheion' meaning a "little cup" in reference to the structures where the spores are produced. The specific epithet honors Sir Daniel Cooper (1821-1902) a member of the old New South Wales Legislative Council and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. In Australia it is known as the Lacy Tree Fern to differentiate it from Cyathea australis, the Rough Tree Fern that has adventitious roots, tubercles and masses of hair-like scales on its trunk. It was awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit in 2017 and we grew this wonderful large fern since 1980. 

The information displayed on this page about Cyathea cooperi is based on the research we conducted about it in our nursery horticultural library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include some of our own observations made about this plant as it grows in the nursery gardens and other gardens that we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we have received from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information that will aid others to better grow it.