The Fern Lover's Companion - free ebook by George Henry Tilton

DEDICATION

To Alice D. Clark, engraver of these illustrations, who has spared no pains to promote the artistic excellence of this work, and to encourage its progress, these pages are dedicated with the high regards of THE AUTHOR....

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PREFACE

fancy A A lover of nature feels the fascination of the ferns though he may know little of their names and habits. Beholding them in their native haunts, adorning the rugged cliffs, gracefully fringing the water-courses, or waving their stately fronds on the borders of woodlands, he feels their call to a closer acquaintance. Happy would he be to receive instruction from a living teacher: His next preference would be the companionship of a good fern book. Such a help we aim to give him in this man

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REPRODUCTION

Ferns are propagated in various ways. A frequent method is by perennial rootstocks, which often creep beneath the surface, sending up, it may be, single fronds, as in the common bracken, or graceful leaf-crowns, as in the cinnamon fern. The bladder fern is propagated in part from its bulblets, while the walking leaf bends over to the earth and roots at the tip. [Illustration: MALE SHIELD FERN. Fern Reproduction by the Prothallium] Ferns are also reproduced by spores, a process mysterious and mar

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VERNATION

All true ferns come out of the ground head foremost, coiled up like a watch-spring, and are designated as "fiddle-heads," or crosiers. (A real crosier is a bishop's staff.) Some of these odd young growths are covered with "fern wool," which birds often use in lining their nests. This wool usually disappears later as the crosier unfolds into the broad green blade. The development of plant shoots from the bud is called vernation (Latin, ver meaning spring), and this unique uncoiling of ferns, "cir

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VEINS

The veins of a fern are free, when, branching from the mid-vein, they do not connect with each other, and simple when they do not fork. When the veins intersect they are said to anastomose (Greek, an opening, or network), and their meshes are called arèolæ or áreoles (Latin, areola , a little open space)....

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EXPLANATION OF TERMS

A frond is said to be pinnate (Latin, pinna , a feather), when its primary divisions extend to the rachis, as in the Christmas fern (Fig. 1). A frond is bipinnate (Latin, bis , twice) when the lobes of the pinnæ extend to the midvein as in the royal fern (Fig. 2). These divisions of the pinnæ are called pinnules. When a frond is tripínnate the last complete divisions are called ultimate pinnules or segments. A frond is pinnátifid when its lobes extend halfway or more to the rachis or midvein as

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SPORÀNGIA AND FRUIT DOTS

Fern spores are formed in little sacs known as spore-cases or sporángia (Fig. 4). They are usually clustered in dots or lines on the back or margin of a frond, either on or at the end of a small vein, or in spike-like racemes on separate stalks. Sori (singular sorus , a heap), or fruit dots may be naked as in the polypody, but are usually covered with a thin, delicate membrane, known as the indusium (Greek, a dress, or mantle). The family or genus of a fern is often determined by the shape of it

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HELPFUL HINTS

The following hints may be helpful to the young collector: A good lens 1. A good lens with needles for dissecting is very helpful in examining the sori, veins, glands, etc., as an accurate knowledge of any one of these items may aid in identifying a given specimen. Bausch and Lomb make a convenient two-bladed pocket glass for about two dollars.[1] [Illustration: Linen Tester] 2. Do not exterminate or weaken a fern colony by taking more plants than it can spare. In small colonies of rare ferns ta

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KEY TO THE GENERA

This key, in illustrating each genus, follows the method of Clute in "Our Ferns in Their Haunts," but substitutes other and larger specimens. Five of these are from Waters' "Ferns" by permission of Henry Holt &amp; Co. As the indusium, which often determines the name of a fern, is apt in some species to wither early, it is important to secure for study not only a fertile frond, but one in as good condition as possible. For convenience the ferns may be considered in two classes....

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I THOSE WHICH HAVE THE FRUITING PORTION IN GREENISH, BERRY-LIKE STRUCTURES AND NOT ON THE BACK OF FRONDS A. FRUITING FRONDS WHOLLY FERTILE (Fertile and sterile fronds entirely unlike)

1. Fruit in a one-sided spike in two ranks; plants very small; sterile fronds thread-like and tortuous. Curly Grass. Schizæa . 2. Fruit in a club-shaped, brown or cinnamon-colored spike loaded with sporangia; fruit in early spring. Cinnamon Fern. Osmunda cinnamomea . 3. Fruit in berry-like, greenish structures in a twice pinnate spike, which comes up much later than the broad and coarse pinnátifid sterile fronds. Wet ground. Sensitive Fern. Onoclea . 4. Fruit in pod-like or necklace-like pinnæ;

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B. FRUITING FRONDS PARTLY STERILE

1. Fruiting portion in the middle of the frond; two to four pairs of fertile pinnæ. Interrupted Fern. Osmunda Claytoniana . 2. Fruiting portion at the apex of the frond. Sterile pinnæ palmate; rachis twining. Climbing Fern. Lygodium . Sterile pinnæ pinnate; fronds large, fertile portion green, turning brown, forming a panicle at the top. Royal Fern. Osmunda regalis . 3. Fruiting portion seemingly on a separate stock a few inches above the sterile. Sterile part an entire, ovate, green leaf near t

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II THOSE WHICH HAVE THE FRUITING PORTION ON THE BACK OR MARGIN OF FRONDS A. INDUSIUM WANTING

1. Fruit-dots large, roundish; fronds evergreen. Rock species. Polypody. Polypodium . 2. Fruit-dots small, roundish; fronds triangular. Beech Ferns. Phegopteris . 3. Fruit in lines on the margin of the pinnules; under surface of the fronds covered with whitish powder. Cloak Ferns. Notholæna ....

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B. INDUSIUM PRESENT

1. Sori on the edge of a pinnule terminating a vein; sporangia at the base of a long, bristle-like receptacle surrounded by a cup-shaped indusium. Filmy Fern. Trichomanes . 2. Indusium formed by the reflexed margin of the pinnules. (1) Sporangia on a continuous line; fronds large, ternate; indusium narrow. Bracken. Brake. Pteris . (2) Sporangia in oblong sori under a reflexed tooth of a pinnule; indusium broad; rachis dark and shining. Maidenhair. Adiantum . (3) Sori in roundish or elongated mas

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DESCRIPTIVE TEXT OF THE FERNS

In this manual our native ferns are grouped scientifically under five distinct families. By far the largest of these groups, and the first to be treated, is that of the real ferns (Polypodiàceæ) with sixty species and several chief varieties. Then follow the flowering ferns (Osmundàceæ) with three species; the curly grass and climbing ferns (Schizæàceæ) with two species; the adder's tongue and grape ferns (Ophioglossàceæ) with seven species; and the filmy ferns (Hymenophyllàceæ) with one species

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THE FERN FAMILY PROPER OR REAL FERNS POLYPODIÀCEÆ

Green, leafy plants whose spores are borne in spore-cases (sporangia), which are collected in dots or clusters (fruit-dots or sori) on the back of the frond or form lines along the edge of its divisions. Sporangia surrounded by vertical, elastic rings bursting transversely and scattering the spores. Fruit-dots (sori) often covered, at least when young, by a membrane called the indusium. Spores brown....

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THE POLYPODIES 1. POLYPODY. Polypodium

(From the Greek meaning many-footed, alluding to the branching rootstocks.) Simple ferns with stipes articulated to the creeping rootstocks, which are covered with brown, chaffy scales. Fruit-dots round, naked, arranged on the back of the frond in one or more rows each side of the midrib. Sporangia pedicelled, provided with a vertical ring which bursts transversely. A large genus with about 350 species, widely distributed, mostly in tropical regions....

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(1) COMMON POLYPODY. Polypodium vulgare

Fronds somewhat leathery in texture, evergreen, four to ten inches tall, smooth, oblong, and nearly pinnate. The large fruit-dots nearly midway between the midrib and the margin, but nearer the margin. Common Polypody. Polypodium vulgare Common Polypody. Polypodium vulgare Common everywhere on cliffs, usually in half shade, and may at times spring out of decaying logs or the trunks of trees. As the jointed stipes, harking back to some ancient mode of fern growth, fall away from the rootstocks af

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(2) GRAY OR HOARY POLYPODY Polypodium incànum. P. polypodiòides

Fronds oblong, two to seven inches long, deeply pinnátifid, gray and scurfy underneath with peltate scales having a dark center. Fruit-dots rather small, near the margin and obscured by the chaff. Gray or Hoary Polypody. Polypodium incanum Gray or Hoary Polypody. Polypodium incanum In appearance the gray polypody is much like the common species, as the Greek ending oides (like) implies. In Florida and neighboring states it often grows on trees; farther north mostly on rocks. Reported as far nort

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1. BRACKEN OR BRAKE Ptèris aquilina. PTERÍDIUM LATIÚSCULUM[1]

Fronds broadly triangular, ternate, one to three feet high or more, the widely spreading branches twice pinnate, the lower pinnules more or less pinnátifid. Sporangia borne in a continuous line along the lower margin of the ultimate divisions whose reflexed edges form the indusium. (Greek, pteron , a wing, the feathery fronds suggesting the wings of a bird.) Common Bracken or Brake Common Bracken or Brake, a Sterile Frond. Pteris aquilina (Providence County, R.I.) Fertile Frond of Common Bracken

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2. MAIDENHAIR. Adiantum

Ferns with much divided leaves and short, marginal sori borne at the ends of free-forking veins, on the under side of the reflexed and altered portion of the pinnules, which serves as an indusium. Stipes and branches of the leaves very slender and polished. (Greek, unwetted, because drops of water roll off without wetting the leaves.)...

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(1) COMMON MAIDENHAIR. Adiantum pedatum

A graceful fern of shady glen and rocky woodland, nine to eighteen inches high, the black, shining stalks forked at the top into two equal, recurved branches, the pinnæ all springing from the upper side. Pinnules triangular-oblong, bearing short sori on their inwardly reflexed margins which form the indusium. A Spray of Maidenhair [Illustration: A Spray of Maidenhair] Sori of Maidenhair [Illustration: Fruiting Pinnæ of Maidenhair] The maidenhair has a superficial resemblance to the meadow rue, w

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(2) THE VENUS-HAIR FERN. Adiantum Capíllus-Veneris

Fronds with a continuous main rachis, ovate-lanceolate, twice pinnate below. Pinnules, fan-shaped on slender, black stalks, long, deeply and irregularly incised. Veins extending from the base of the pinnules like the ribs of a fan. Venus Hair Fern [Illustration: Venus Hair Fern. Adiantum Capillus-Veneris ] While our common maidenhair is a northern fern, the Venus-hair Fern is confined to the southern states. It is rarely found as far north as Virginia, where it meets, but scarcely overlaps its s

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3. CLIFF BRAKES. Pellàea

Sporangia borne on the upper part of the free veins inside the margins, in dot-like masses, but may run together, as in the continuous fruiting line of the bracken. Indusium formed of the reflexed margins of the fertile segments which are more or less membranous. (Pellæa, from the Greek pellos , meaning dusky, in allusion to the dark stipes.)...

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(1) PURPLE CLIFF BRAKE. Pellæa atropurpùrea

Stipes dark purple or reddish-brown, polished and decidedly hairy and harsh to the touch, at least on one side. Fronds coriaceous, pale, simply pinnate, or bipinnate below; the divisions broadly linear or oblong, or the sterile sometimes oval, chiefly entire, somewhat heart-shaped, or else truncate at the stalked base. Veins about twice forked. Basal scales extending into long, slender tips, colorless or yellow. Purple Cliff Brake [Illustration: Purple Cliff Brake. Pellæa atropurpurea ] Another

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(2) SMOOTH CLIFF BRAKE Pellàea glabella. Pellàea atropurpùrea, var. Bushii

Naked with a few, scattered, spreading hairs, smooth surface and dark polished stipes. Rhizome short with membranous, orange or brown scales having a few bluntish teeth on each edge. Pinnæ sub-opposite, divergent, narrowly oblong, obtuse; base truncate, cordate or clasping, occasionally auricled; lower pinnæ often with orbicular or cordate pinnules. Sterile pinnæ broader, bluish or greenish glaucous above, often crowded to overlapping. The smooth cliff brake has a decidedly northern range, growi

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(3) DENSE CLIFF BRAKE Cryptográmma densa. Pellaèa densa

Modern botanists are inclined to place the dense cliff brake and the slender cliff brake under the genus Cryptográmma , which is so nearly like Pellaea that one hesitates to choose between them. The word Cryptográmma means in Greek a hidden line , alluding to the line of sporangia hidden beneath the reflexed margin. The dense cliff brake may be described as follows: Stipes three to nine inches tall, blades one to three inches, triangular-ovate, pinnate at the summit, and tripinnate below. Segmen

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(4) SLENDER CLIFF BRAKE Cryptográmma Stellèri. Pellaèa grácilis

Fronds (including stipes) three to six inches long, thin and slender with few pinnæ. The lower pinnæ pinnately parted into three to five divisions, those of the fertile fronds oblong or linear-oblong; those of the sterile, obovate or ovate, crenulate, decurrent at the base. Confined to limestone rocks. Quebec and New Brunswick, to Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and to the northwest. Slender Cliff Brake [Illustration: Slender Cliff Brake. Cryptogramma Stelleri ] We have collected this dainty

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(5) THE ROCK BRAKE. PARSLEY FERN Cryptográmma acrostichòides

Sterile and fertile fronds very dissimilar; segments of the fertile, linear and pod-like; of the sterile, ovate-oblong, obtuse, and toothed. The plants spring from crevices of rocks and are from six to eight inches high. Stipes of the fertile fronds are about twice as long as the sterile, making two tiers of fronds. Parsley Fern or Rock Brake [Illustration: Parsley Fern or Rock Brake. Cryptogramma acrostichoides (California and Oregon) (Herbarium of Geo. E. Davenport)] The parsley fern is the ty

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4. LIP FERNS. Cheilánthes

Mostly small southern ferns growing on rocks, pubescent or tomentose with much divided leaves. Sori at the end of the veins at first small and roundish, but afterwards more or less confluent. The indusium whitish and sometimes herbaceous, formed of the reflexed margin of the lobes or of the whole pinnule. Veins free, but often obscure. Most of the ferns of this genus grow in dry, exposed situations, where rain is sometimes absent for weeks and months. For this reason they protect themselves by a

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(1) ALABAMA LIP FERN. Cheilánthes alabaménsis

Fronds smooth, two to ten inches long, lanceolate, bipinnate. Pinnæ numerous, oblong-lanceolate, the lower usually smaller than those above. Pinnules triangular-oblong, mostly acute, often auricular or lobed at the base. Indusia pale, membranous and continuous except between the lobes. Stipes black, slender and tomentose at the base. Alabama Lip Fern [Illustration: Alabama Lip Fern. Cheilanthes alabamensis (From Waters's "Ferns," Henry Holt &amp; Co.)] This species of lip fern may be disting

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(2) HAIRY LIP FERN. Cheilánthes lanòsa, C. véstita

Hairy Lip Fern [Illustration: Hairy Lip Fern] Fronds twice pinnate, lanceolate with oblong, pinnátifid pinnules; seven to fifteen inches tall, slender and rough with rusty, jointed hairs. Pinnæ triangular-ovate, usually distant, the ends of the rounded lobes reflexed and forming separate involucres which are pushed back by the ripening sporangia. This species like the other lip ferns is fond of rocks, springing from clefts and ledges. While hairy it is much less tomentose than the two following

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(3) WOOLLY LIP FERN. Cheilánthes tomentòsa

Fronds eight to eighteen inches long, lanceolate-oblong, tripinnate. Pinnæ and pinnules ovate-oblong, densely woolly especially beneath, with slender, whitish, obscurely jointed hairs. Of the ultimate segments the terminal one is twice as long as the others. Pinnules distant, the reflexed, narrow margin forming a continuous, membranous indusium. Stipe stout, dark brown, densely woolly. By donning its thick coat of wool this species is prepared to grow in the most exposed situations of the arid s

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(4) SLENDER LIP FERN Cheilánthes Féei, C. lanuginòsa

Stipes densely tufted, slender, at first hairy, dark brown, shining. Fronds three to eight inches long, ovate-lanceolate, with thickish, distinctly articulated hairs, twice or thrice pinnate. Pinnæ ovate, the lowest deltoid. Pinnules divided into minute, densely crowded segments, the herbaceous margin recurved and forming an almost continuous indusium. Slender Lip Fern [Illustration: Slender Lip Fern] The slender lip fern, known also as Fée's fern, is much the smallest of the lip ferns, averagin

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5. CLOAK FERN. Notholàena

Small ferns with fruit-dots borne beneath the revolute margin of the pinnules, at first roundish, but soon confluent into a narrow band without indusium. Veins free. Fronds one to several times pinnate, the lower surface hairy, or tomentose or powdery. Includes about forty species, mostly American, but only one within our limits. (Greek name means spurious cloak , alluding to the rudimentary or counterfeit indusium.)...

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(1) POWDERY CLOAK FERN. Notholàena dealbàta

Fronds two to six inches long, triangular-ovate, acute, broadest at the base, tripinnate. Stalks tufted, wiry, shining, dark brown. Upper surface of the very small segments green, smooth, the lower densely coated with a pure, white powder; hence, the specific name dealbata , which means whitened. Sori brown at length; veins free. There are several species of cloak ferns, but only one within our limits. The dry, white powder which covers them doubtless is designed to protect them from too rapid e

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THE CHAIN FERNS. Woodwardia

Large and somewhat coarse ferns of swampy woods with pinnate or nearly two-pinnate fronds, and oblong or linear fruit-dots, arranged in one or more chain-like rows, parallel to and near the midribs. Indusium fixed by its outer margin to a veinlet and opening on the inner side. In our section there are two species. (Named for Thomas J. Woodward, an English botanist.)...

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(1) THE COMMON CHAIN FERN. Woodwardia virgínica

Sterile and fertile fronds similar in outline, two to four feet high, once pinnate, the pinnæ deeply incised with oblong segments. Fruit-dots oblong in chain-like rows along the midrib both of the pinnæ and the lobes, confluent when ripe. Veins forming narrow rows of net-like spaces (areoles) beneath the fruit-dots, thence free to the margin. The spores ripen in July. Common Chain Fern [Illustration: The Common Chain Fern. Woodwardia virginica ] The sterile fronds resemble those of the cinnamon

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(2) NET-VEINED CHAIN FERN NARROW-LEAVED CHAIN FERN Woodwardia areolàta. W. angustifòlia

Root stocks creeping and chaffy. Sterile and fertile fronds unlike; sterile ones nine to twelve inches tall, deltoid-ovate. Broadest at the base, with lanceolate, serrulate divisions united by a broad wing. Veins areolate; fertile fronds taller, twelve to twenty inches high with narrowly linear divisions, the areoles and fruit-dots in a single row each side of the secondary midrib, the latter sunk in the tissues. This species is less common than the Virginia fern, but they often grow near each o

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A. THE ROCK SPLEENWORTS. Asplènium

Small, evergreen ferns. Fruit-dots oblong or linear, oblique, separate when young. Indusium straight or rarely curved, fixed lengthwise on the upper side of a fertile veinlet, opening toward the midrib. Veins free. Scales of rhizome and stipes narrow, of firm texture and with thick-walled cells....

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(1) PINNÀTIFID SPLEENWORT. Asplenium pinnatífídum

Fronds four to six inches long, lanceolate, pinnátifid or pinnate near the base, tapering above into a slender prolongation. Lobes roundish-ovate, or the lower pair acuminate. Fruit-dots irregular, numerous. Stipes tufted, two to four inches long, brownish beneath, green above. Although this fern, like all the small spleenworts, is heavily fruited, it is extremely rare. It is found as far north as Sharon, Conn., thence southward to Georgia, to Arkansas and Missouri. On cliffs and rocks. Resemble

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(2) SCOTT'S SPLEENWORT. Asplenium ebenòides

Fronds four to ten inches long, broadly lanceolate, pinnátifid or pinnate below, tapering to a prolonged and slender apex. Divisions lanceolate from a broad base. Fruit-dots straight or slightly curved. Stipe and rachis brown. Pinnatifid Spleenwort [Illustration: Pinnatifid Spleenwort. Asplenium pinnatifidum a, Small Plants from Harper's Ferry; b, Sori on Young Fronds (From Waters's "Ferns," Henry Holt &amp; Co.)] Scott's Spleenwort [Illustration: Scott's Spleenwort. Asplenium ebenoides a, f

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(3) GREEN SPLEENWORT. Asplenium víride

Fronds two to ten inches long, linear, pinnate, pale green. Pinnæ roundish-ovate, crenate, with indistinct and forking midveins. Stalks tufted, short, brownish below, green above. Rachis green. Discovered at Smuggler's Notch, Mt. Mansfield, Vt., by C.G. Pringle in 1876. Found sparingly at Willoughby Lake, high on the cliffs of Mt. Horr. This rare and delicate little plant bears a rather close resemblance to the maidenhair spleenwort, which, however, has dark stipes instead of green. Northern New

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(4) MAIDENHAIR SPLEENWORT. Asplenium Trichómanes

Stipes densely tufted, purple-brown, shining. Fronds three to eight inches long, linear, dark green, rather rigid. Pinnæ roundish-oblong or oval, entire or finely crenate, attached at the base by a narrow point. Midveins forking and evanescent. Not very common, but distributed almost throughout North America. May be looked for wherever there are ledges, as it does not require limestone. July. Maidenhair Spleenwort [Illustration: Maidenhair Spleenwort. Asplenium Trichomanes (From Woolson's "Ferns

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(5) SMALL SPLEENWORT

Asplenium párvulum. A. resíliens Fronds four to ten inches tall, narrowly linear, rather firm, erect. Pinnæ opposite, oblong, entire or finely crenate, and auricled at the base. Stipes and rachis black and shining. Midveins continuous. This small fern is a southern species half way between the maidenhair and ebony spleenworts, but rather more like the latter from which it differs in being smaller and thicker, and in having the fertile and sterile fronds of the same size. Mountains of Virginia to

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(6) EBONY SPLEENWORT

Asplenium platynèuron. A. ebèneum Fronds upright, eight to eighteen inches high, linear-lanceolate, the fertile ones much taller, and pinnate. Pinnæ scarcely an inch long, the lower ones very much shorter, alternate, spreading, finely serrate or incised, the base auricled. Sori numerous, rather near the midvein, stipe and rachis lustrous brown. ("Ebony.") This rigidly upright but graceful fern flourishes in rocky, open woods, and on rich, moist banks, often in the neighborhood of red cedars. Hav

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(7) BRADLEY'S SPLEENWORT. Asplenium Brádleyi

Fronds oblong-lanceolate, pinnate, three to ten inches long. Pinnæ oblong-ovate, obtuse, incised or pinnátifid into oblong, toothed lobes. The basal pinnæ have broad bases, and blunt tips and are slightly stalked. Stipes and rachis dark brown and the sori short, near the midrib. A rare and beautiful fern growing on rocks preferring limestone and confined mostly to the southern states. Newburg, N.Y., to Kentucky and Alabama, westward to Arkansas....

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(8) MOUNTAIN SPLEENWORT. Asplenium montanum

Fronds ovate-lanceolate from a broad base, two to eight inches long, somewhat leathery, pinnate. Pinnæ ovate-oblong, the lowest pinnately cleft into oblong or ovate cut-toothed lobes, the upper ones less and less divided. Rachis green, broad, and flat. Mountain Spleenwort [Illustration: Mountain Spleenwort (From the "Fern Bulletin")] Small evergreen ferns of a bluish-green color, growing in the crevices of rocks and cliffs. Connecticut to Ohio, Kentucky, Arkansas and southwest. July. Rare. Willi

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(9) RUE SPLEENWORT. Asplenium Ruta-murària

Fronds evergreen, small, two to seven inches long, deltoid-ovate, two to three pinnate below, simply pinnate above, rather leathery in texture. Divisions few, stalked, from cuneate to roundish-ovate, toothed or incised at the apex. Veins forking. Rachis and stipe green. Sori few, soon confluent. Rue Spleenwort [Illustration: The Rue Spleenwort. A. Ruta-muraria (Top, Lake Huron--Lower Left, Mt. Toby, Mass.--Lower Right, Vermont) (From Herbarium of Geo. E. Davenport)] This tiny fern grows from sma

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B. THE LARGE SPLEENWORTS. Athýrium

The following species, which are often two to three feet high and grow in rich soil, are quite different in appearance and habits from the small rock spleenworts just described. Some botanists have kept them in the genus Asplenium because their sori are usually rather straight or only slightly curved, but others are inclined to follow the practice of the British botanists and put them into a separate group under Athýrium . Nearly all agree that the lady fern, with its variously curved sori, shou

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THE LADY FERN AND ITS KIN 1. THE LADY FERNS

Fronds one to three feet high, broadly lanceolate, or ovate-oblong, tapering towards the apex, bipinnate. Pinnæ lanceolate, numerous. Pinnules oblong-lanceolate, cut-toothed or incised. Fruit-dots short, variously curved. Indusium delicate, often reniform, or shaped like a horseshoe, in some forms confluent at maturity. Widely distributed, common and varying greatly in outline. The newer nomenclature separates the lady fern of our section into two distinct species, which should be carefully stud

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(1) THE UPLAND LADY FERN. ATHÝRIUM ANGÚSTUM Asplènium Fìlix-femina

The rootstock or rhizome of the Upland Lady Fern here pictured shows how the thick, fleshy bases of the old fronds conceal the rootstock itself. In the Lowland Lady Fern the rootstock is but slightly concealed by old stipe bases, and so may be distinguished from its sister fern. One design of such rootstocks is to store up food (mostly starch), during the summer to nourish the young plants as they shoot forth the next spring. The undecayed bases of the old stipes are also packed with starch for

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(2) THE LOWLAND LADY FERN ATHÝRIUM ASPLENIÒIDES

Rootstocks creeping, not densely covered with the persistent bases of the fronds. Stipes about as long as the blade. Scales of the stipe very few, seldom persistent, rarely over 3-16 of an inch long. Fronds narrowly deltoid, lanceolate, widest near the base, the second pair of pinnæ commonly longest. Indusia ciliate, the cilia (hairs) ending in glands. Spores dark, netted or wrinkled. Lowland Lady Fern [Illustration: Lowland Lady Fern. ATHYRIUM ASPLENIOIDES (From the Gray Herbarium)] The followi

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(3) SILVERY SPLEENWORT. ATHÝRIUM ACROSTICHÒIDES Asplènium acrostichòides. Asplènium thelypteròides

Fronds two to four feet tall, pinnate, tapering both ways from the middle. Pinnæ deeply pinnatifid, linear-lanceolate, acuminate. Lobes oblong, obtuse, minutely toothed, each bearing two rows of oblong or linear fruit-dots. Indusium silvery when young. Silvery Spleenwort [Illustration: Silvery Spleenwort. Athyrium acrostichoides ] Silvery Spleenwort [Illustration: Silvery Spleenwort. Athyrium acrostichoides] The sterile fronds come up first and the taller, fertile ones do not appear until late i

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(4) NARROW-LEAVED SPLEENWORT ATHÝRIUM ANGUSTIFÒLIUM. Asplenium angustifòlium

Fronds one to four feet tall, pinnate. Pinnæ numerous, thin, short-stalked, linear-lanceolate, acuminate, those of the fertile fronds narrower. Fruit-dots linear. Indusium slightly convex. Narrow-leaved Spleenwort [Illustration: Narrow-leaved Spleenwort. Athyrium angustifolium (Vermont) (Geo. E. Davenport)] In rich woods from southern Canada and New Hampshire to Minnesota and southward. September. Not common. Mt. Toby, Mass., Berlin and Meriden, Conn., and Danville, Vt. Can be cultivated but sho

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Scolopéndrium. PHYLLÌTIS

Sori linear, a row on either side of the midvein, and at right angles to it, the indusium appearing to be double. ( Scolopendrium is the Greek for centipede, whose feet the sori were thought to resemble. Phyllitis is the ancient Greek name for a fern.) Only one species in the United States....

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(1) Scolopendrium vulgàre PHYLLÌTIS SCOLOPÉNDRIUM

Fronds thick and leathery, oblong-lanceolate from an auricled, heart-shaped base, ten to twenty inches long and one to two inches wide. Margin entire, bright green. [Illustration: Sori of Scolopendrium vulgare ] In shaded ravines under limestone cliffs. Chittenango Falls, and Scolopendrium Lake, central New York, and Tennessee. Also, locally in Ontario and New Brunswick. One of the rarest of our native ferns, although very common in Great Britain. This plant is said to be easily cultivated, and

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Camptosòrus

Fruit-dots oblong or linear as in Asplènium , but irregularly scattered on either side of the reticulated veins of the simple frond, the outer ones sometimes confluent at their ends, forming crooked lines (hence, the name from the Greek meaning crooked sori). Only one species within our limits....

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Camptosòrus rhizophyllus

Fronds evergreen, leathery, four to eighteen inches long, heart-shaped at the base, but tapering towards the apex, which often roots and forms a new plant. Veins reticulated. The auricles of this species are sometimes elongated and may even take root. This curious and interesting fern is one of the finest for rockeries, the tips taking root in rock-fissures. Shaded limestone, or sometimes other rocks. Shapleigh and Winthrop, Me., rarely in New Hampshire (Lebanon), and Connecticut, Mt. Toby, Mass

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THE CHRISTMAS AND HOLLY FERNS Polýstichum

These have been grouped with the wood ferns, but are now usually placed under the genus Polýstichum , which has the sori round and covered with a circular indusium fixed to the frond by its depressed center. The wood ferns, on the other hand, have a kidney-shaped indusium attached to the fronds by the sinus. ( Polýstichum is the Greek for many rows, the sori of some species being in many ranks.)...

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(1) THE CHRISTMAS FERN

Polýstichum acrostichòides. Aspídium acrostichòides Stipes clothed with pale, brown scales. Frond rigid and evergreen, one to two feet long, lanceolate, pinnate. Pinnæ linear-lanceolate, scythe-shaped, auricled on the upper side, and with bristly teeth; fertile pinnæ contracted toward the top, bearing two rows of sori, which soon become confluent and cover the entire surface. Indusium orbicular, fixed by its depressed center. F. incìsum is a form in which the pinnæ are much incised. F. críspum h

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(2) BRAUN'S HOLLY FERN

Polystichum Bráunii. Aspídium aculeàtum Bráunii Fronds thick, rigid, one to two feet long, spreading, lanceolate, tapering both ways, bipinnate. Pinnules ovate or oblong, truncate, nearly rectangular at the base, sharply toothed and covered beneath with chaff and hairs. Fruit-dots small and near the mid veins. Indusium orbicular, entire. Stipes chaffy with brown scales. Braun's Holly Fern [Illustration: Braun's Holly Fern. Polystichum Braunii (Willoughby Mountain, Vt.) (Herbarium of G.H.T.)] Thi

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(3) HOLLY FERN. Polystichum Lonchìtis

Fronds linear-lanceolate, short-stalked and rigid, eight to fifteen inches long. Pinnæ broadly lanceolate-falcate or the lowest triangular, strongly auricled on the upper side, densely spinulose-toothed. Sori midway between the margin and midrib. Holly Fern [Illustration: Holly Fern. Polystichum Lonchitis (Nottawasaga, Canada, West, Right, Alaska, Left) (Herbarium of C.E. Davenport)] The name holly fern suggests its resemblance to holly leaves with their bristle-tipped teeth. The specific name l

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(1) THE MARSH FERN Aspídium thelýpteris. THELÝPTERIS PALÚSTRIS Dryópteris thelýpteris. Nephròdium thelýpteris

Marsh Fern [Illustration: The Marsh Fern] These are all good names and each one is worthy to be chosen. Aspídium , Greek for shield, in use for a century, adopted in all the seven editions of Gray's Manual, is still the most familiar and pleasing term to its friends. Dryópteris , Greek for oak fern, has been chosen by Underwood and Britton and Brown and has grown in favor. Nephròdium , meaning kidney-like, favored by Davenport, Waters and, of late, Clute, is a most fitting name. THELÝPTERIS, mea

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(2) MASSACHUSETTS FERN Aspidium simulàtum. THELÝPTERIS SIMULÀTA Dryópteris simulata. Nephròdium simulàtum

Fronds pinnate, one to three feet long, oblong-lanceolate, somewhat narrowed at the base. Pinnæ lanceolate, deeply pinnatifid, the lower most often turned inward. Veins simple. Indusium glandular. Sori rather large. Resembles the marsh fern, of which it was once thought to be a variety. In some respects it is also like the New York fern, and is in fact intermediate between the two. Massachusetts Fern [Illustration: Massachusetts Fern. Aspidium simulatum 1. Sterile Frond. 2. A Fruiting Pinnule. 3

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(3) NEW YORK FERN Aspidium noveboracénse. THELÝPTERIS NOVEBORACÉNSIS Dryópteris noveboracénsis. Nephròdium noveboracénse

Fronds pinnate, tapering both ways from the middle. Pinnæ lanceolate, pinnatifid, the lowest pairs gradually shorter and deflexed. Veins simple. Indusium minute and beset with glands. New York Fern [Illustration: New York Fern. Aspidium noveboracense ] Very common in woodlands, preferring a dryer soil than the marsh fern. August. The fronds are pale green, delicate and hairy beneath along the midrib and veins. New York Fern [Illustration: Sori of New York Fern (From Waters's "Ferns," Henry Holt

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(1) OAK FERN Phegópteris dryópteris. THELÝPTERIS DRYÓPTERIS

Fronds glabrous, broadly triangular, ternate, four to seven inches broad, the divisions widely spreading, each division pinnate at the base. Segments oblong, obtuse, entire or toothed. Fruit-dots near the margin. Rootstock slender and creeping from which fronds are produced all summer, in appearance like the small, ternate divisions of the bracken. This dainty fern has fronds of a delicate yellow-green, "the greenest of all green things growing." Its ternate character is shown even in the uncoil

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(2) THE NORTHERN OAK FERN Phegopteris Robertiana. Phegopteris calcàrea THELÝPTERIS ROBERTIÀNA

Resembles the oak fern, but with fronds rather larger, especially the terminal segment; also more rigid and coarser in appearance. Stalks and fronds minutely glandular beneath. Lower pinnules of the lateral divisions scarcely longer than the others. Often called "Limestone Polypody," the beech ferns having formerly been classed with the polypodies. Britton and Brown designate it as the "Scented Oak Fern." Canada and the northwestern states. Rare. Northern Oak Fern [Illustration: Northern Oak Fer

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(3) BROAD BEECH FERN Phegopteris hexagonóptera THELÝPTERIS HEXAGONÓPTERA

Fronds triangular, broader than long, seven to twelve inches broad, spreading more or less horizontally at the summit of the stipe; pubescent and often glandular beneath; pinnæ fragrant, lanceolate, the lowest pair usually much larger than those above, having the segments elongated and cut into lobes. Basal segments decurrent and forming a many-angled wing along the main rachis. Fruit-dots small, near the margin. The broad beech fern is usually larger than its sister, the long beech fern, and ex

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(4) LONG BEECH FERN Phegopteris polypodiòides. THELÝPTERIS PHEGÓPTERIS

Fronds triangular, longer than broad, four to six inches long, twice pinnatifid. Pinnæ lanceolate, acuminate, the lowest pair deflexed and standing forward; cut into oblong, obtuse segments. Fruit-dots near the margin. Compared with the broad beech fern this is the more northern species. While usually quite distinct in structure, it sometimes approaches its sister fern rather closely. It prefers deep woods and shaded banks. Newfoundland to Alaska and southward to the mountains of Virginia. July.

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Aspídium fràgrans. Nephròdium fràgrans THELÝPTERIS FRÀGRANS. Dryópteris fràgrans

Fronds four to twelve inches high, glandular-aromatic, narrowly lanceolate and twice pinnate or nearly so. Pinnæ oblong-lanceolate, pinnate or deeply pinnatifid. Pinnules toothed or entire nearly covered beneath with the large, thin, imbricated indusia which are orbicular with a narrow sinus, having the margins ragged and sparingly glanduliferous. Stipe short and chaffy. The fragrant fern grows on high cliffs among the mountains of northern New England. It is reported from scattered stations in

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KEY TO THE WOOD FERNS

Marginal Shield Fern [Illustration: Marginal Shield Fern. Aspidium marginale ] The ferns of this group, not counting the small fragrant fern, prefer the woods or at least shady places. Although the genus Polýstichum represents the true shield ferns, the wood ferns are also thus designated, as their indusia have nearly the shape of small, roundish shields. The old generic name for them all was Aspídium (meaning shield), first published in 1800. For a long time its chief rival was Nephròdium (kidn

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(1) MARGINAL SHIELD FERN, EVERGREEN WOOD FERN Aspídium marginàle. THELÝPTERIS MARGINÀLIS Dryópteris marginàlis. Nephròdium marginàle

Fronds from a few inches to three feet long, ovate-oblong, somewhat leathery, smooth, twice pinnate. Pinnæ lanceolate, acuminate, broadest just above the base. Pinnules oblong, often slightly falcate, entire or toothed. Fruit-dots large, round, close to the margin. Rocky hillsides in rich woods, rather common throughout our area. The heavy rootstock rises slightly above the ground and is clothed at the crown with shaggy, brown scales. Its rising caudex, often creeping for several inches over bar

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(2) THE MALE FERN Aspídium Fìlix-mas. THELÝPTERIS FÌLIX-MAS Dryópteris Fìlix-mas. Nephròdium Fìlix-mas

Fronds lanceolate, pinnate, one to three feet high growing in a crown from a shaggy rootstock. Pinnæ lanceolate, tapering from base to apex. Pinnules oblong, obtuse, serrate at the apex, obscurely so at the sides, the basal incisely lobed, distant, the upper confluent. Fruit-dots large, nearer the mid vein than the margin, mostly on the lower half of each fertile segment. The male fern resembles the marginal shield fern in outline, but the fronds are thinner, are not evergreen, and the sori are

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(3) GOLDIE'S FERN Aspidium Goldiànum. THELYPTERIS GOLDIÀNA Dryopteris Goldiàna. Nephrodium Goldiànum

Fronds two to four feet high and often one foot broad, pinnate, broadly ovate, especially the sterile ones. Pinnæ deeply pinnatifid, broadest in the middle. The divisions (eighteen or twenty pairs) oblong-linear, slightly toothed. Fruit-dots very near the midvein. Indusium large, orbicular, with a deep, narrow sinus. Scales dark brown to nearly black with a peculiar silky lustre. A magnificent species, the tallest and largest of the wood ferns. It delights in rich woodlands where there is limest

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(4) THE CRESTED FERN Aspidium cristàtum. THELÝPTERIS CRISTÀTA Dryopteris cristàta. Nephrodium cristàtum

Fronds one to two feet long, linear-oblong or lanceolate, pinnate, acute. Pinnæ two to three inches long, broadest at the base, triangular-oblong, or the lowest triangular. Divisions oblong, obtuse, finely serrate or cut-toothed, those nearest the rachis sometimes separate. Fruit-dots large, round, half way between the midvein and the margin. Indusium smooth, naked, with a shallow sinus. The short sterile fronds, though spreading out gracefully, are conspicuous only in winter; while the fertile

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CRESTED MARGINAL FERN Aspídium cristàtum X marginàle

Both the crested fern and Clinton's fern appear to hybridize with the marginal shield fern with the result that the upper part of the frond is like marginale and the lower like cristàtum , including the veining and texture. This form was discovered by Raynal Dodge, verified by Margaret Slosson and described by Geo. E. Davenport, who had a small colony under cultivation in his fern garden at Medford, Mass., and to him the writer and other friends are indebted for specimens. Found occasionally thr

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(5) BOOTT'S SHIELD FERN Aspidium Boottii. THELÝPTERIS BOOTTII Dryopteris Boottii. Nephrodium Boottii

Fronds one to three feet high, oblong-lanceolate, bipinnate, the upper pinnæ lanceolate, the lower triangular with spinulose teeth. Sori in rows each side of the midvein, one to each tooth and often scattering on the lower pinules. Indusium large, minutely glandular, variable. This fern has been thought to be a hybrid between the crested and spinulose ferns, but is now regarded as distinct. Like the crested fern its fertile fronds wither in autumn, while its sterile blades remain green throughou

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(6) SPINULOSE SHIELD FERN Aspidium spinulòsum. THELÝPTERIS SPINULÒSA Dryopteris spinulòsa. Nephrodium spinulòsum

Stipes with a few pale brown deciduous scales. Fronds one to two and one-half feet long, ovate-lanceolate, twice pinnate. Pinnæ oblique to the rachis, the lower ones broadly triangular, the upper ones elongated. Pinnules on the inferior side of the pinnæ often elongated, especially the lower pair, the pinnule nearest the rachis being usually the longest, at least in the lowest pinnæ. Pinnules variously cut into spinulose-toothed segments. Indusium smooth, without marginal glands. The common Euro

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(1) THE BULBLET BLADDER FERN Cystópteris bulbífera. Fìlix bulbífera

Fronds lanceolate, elongated, one to three feet long, twice pinnate. Pinnæ lanceolate-oblong, pointed, horizontal, the lowest pair longest. Rachis and pinnæ often bearing bulblets beneath. Pinnules toothed or deeply lobed. Indusium short, truncate on the free side. Stipe short. Bulblet Bladder Fern [Illustration: Bulblet Bladder Fern. Cystopteris bulbifera (Willoughby, Vt., 1904, G.H.T.)] Bulblet Bladder Fern [Illustration: Bulblet Bladder Fern. Cystopteris bulbifera ] One of the most graceful a

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(2) THE COMMON BLADDER FERN Cystopteris frágilis. Filix frágilis

Stipe long and brittle. Fronds oblong-lanceolate, five to twelve inches long, twice pinnate, the pinnæ often pinnatifid or cut-toothed, ovate-lanceolate, decurrent on the winged rachis. Indusium appearing acute at the free end. Very variable in the cutting of the pinnules. The fragile bladder fern, as it is often called, and which the name frágilis suggests, is the earliest to appear in the spring, and the first to disappear, as by the end of July it has discharged its spores and withered away.

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KEY TO THE WOODSIAS

Small, tufted, pinnately divided ferns. Fruit-dots borne on the back of simply forked, free veins. Indusium fixed beneath the sori, thin and often evanescent, either small and open, or early bursting at the top into irregular pieces or lobes. (Named for James Woods, an English botanist.)...

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(1) RUSTY WOODSIA. Woódsia ilvénsis

Fronds oblong-lanceolate, three to ten inches high, rather smooth above, thickly clothed underneath with rusty, bristle-like chaff. Pinnate, the pinnæ crowded, sessile, cut into oblong segments. Fruit-dots near the margin often confluent at maturity. Indusium divided nearly in the center into slender hairs which are curled over the sporangia. Stipes jointed an inch or so above the rootstock. Rusty Woodsia [Illustration: Rusty Woodsia, Woodsia ilvensis ] The rusty Woodsia is decidedly a rock-lovi

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(2) NORTHERN WOODSIA. ALPINE WOODSIA Woodsia alpìna. Woodsia hyperbòrea

Fronds narrowly lanceolate, two to six inches long, smooth above, somewhat hairy beneath, pinnate. Pinnæ triangular-ovate, obtuse, lobed, the lobes few and nearly entire. Fruit-dots rarely confluent. Indusium as in Woodsia ilvensis . Northern Woodsia [Illustration: Details of Northern Woodsia. Woodsia alpina ] Thought by some botanists to be a smooth form of Woodsia ilvensis . It was discovered in the United States by Horace Mann, in 1863, at Willoughby Lake, Vt. Twenty years or more later it wa

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(3) BLUNT-LOBED WOODSIA. Woodsia obtùsa

Fronds broadly lanceolate, ten to eighteen inches long, nearly twice pinnate, often minutely glandular. Pinnæ rather remote, triangular-ovate or oblong, pinnately parted into obtuse, oblong, toothed segments. Veins forked. Fruit-dots on or near the margin of the lobes. Indusium conspicuous, at length splitting into several spreading, jagged lobes. Blunt-lobed Woodsia [Illustration: Blunt-lobed Woodsia. Woodsia obtusa ] This is our most common species of Woodsia and it has a wider range than the

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(4) SMOOTH WOODSIA. Woodsia glabélla

Fronds two to five inches high, very delicate, linear, pinnate. Pinnæ remote at the base, roundish-ovate, very obtuse with a few crenate lobes. Stipes jointed, straw-colored. Hairs of the indusium few and minute. Smooth Woodsia [Illustration: Smooth Woodsia. Woodsia glabella (Willoughhy Mountain, Vt. G.H.T.)] On moist, mossy, mostly calcareous rocks, northern New England, Mount Mansfield, Willoughby, and Bakersfield Ledge, Vt., Gorham, N.H., also Newfoundland, New York, and far to the northwest.

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(5) OREGON WOODSIA. Woódsia oregàna

Fronds two to ten inches high, smooth, bright green, glandular beneath, narrowly lance-oblong, bipinnatifid. Pinnse triangular-oblong, obtuse, pinnatifid. Segments ovate or oblong, obtuse, crenate, the teeth or margin nearly always reflexed. Indusium minute, concealed beneath the sorus, divided into a few beaded hairs. Like the obtuse Woodsia this fern has no joint near the base of the stipe, but is much smaller and has several points of difference. Limestone cliffs, Gaspé Peninsula, southern sh

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(6) ROCKY MOUNTAIN WOODSIA. Woódsia scopulìna

Fronds six to fifteen inches long [smooth], lanceolate, pinnatifid. Pinnæ triangular-ovate, the lowest pair shortened. Under surface of the whole frond hispidulous with minute, white hairs and stalked glands. Indusium hidden beneath the sporangia, consisting mostly of a few hair-like divisions. In crevices of rocks, mountains of West Virginia, Gaspé Peninsula, Rocky Mountains, and westward to Oregon and California....

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(7) CATHCART'S WOODSIA. Woodsia Cathcartiàna

Fronds eight to twelve inches high, lanceolate, bipinnatifid, finely glandular-puberulent. Pinnse oblong; the lower distant segments oblong, denticulate, separated by wide sinuses. Rocky river banks, west Michigan to northeast Minnesota....

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DENNSTAÉDTIA. Dicksònia

Fruit-dots small, globular, marginal, each on the apex of a vein or fork. Sporangia borne on an elevated, globular receptacle in a membranous, cup-shaped indusium which is open at the top. (Named in honor of August Wilhelm Dennstaed.)...

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HAYSCENTED FERN. BOULDER FERN DENNSTAÉDTIA PUNCTILÓBULA[A] Dicksònia punctilóbula. Dicksònia pilosiúscula

Fronds one to three feet high, minutely glandular and hairy, ovate-lanceolate, pale green, very thin and mostly bipinnate. Primary pinnæ in outline like the frond; the secondary, pinnatifid into oblong and obtuse, cut-toothed lobes. Fruit-dots minute, each on a recurved toothlet, usually one at the upper margin of each lobe. Indusium fixed under the sporangia, appearing like a tiny green cup filled with spore cases. Hayscented Fern [Illustration: Hayscented Fern. Dennstædtia punctilobula (Sudbur

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THE SENSITIVE AND OSTRICH FERNS Onoclèa. PTERÉTIS. Mattèuccia. Struthiópteris

(Last three names applied to Ostrich Fern only.) It is a question whether the sensitive and ostrich fern should be included in the same genus. They are similar in many respects, but not in all. The sensitive fern has a running rootstock, scattered fronds, and netted veins; while the ostrich fern has an upright rootstock, fronds in crowns, and free veins. Sensitive Fern [Illustration: Sensitive Fern. Gradations from Leaf to Fruit. Obtusilobata Form]...

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(1) SENSITIVE FERN. Onoclèa sensíbilis

Fronds one to three feet high, scattered along a creeping rootstock, broadly triangular, deeply pinnatifid, with segments sinuately lobed or nearly entire. Veins reticulated with fine meshes. The fertile fronds shorter, closely bipinnate with the pinnules rolled up into berry-like structures which contain the spore cases. (The name in Greek means a closed vessel, in allusion to the berry-like fertile segments.) The sensitive fern is so called from its being very sensitive to frost. The sterile a

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(2) OSTRICH FERN Onoclea struthiópteris. PTERETIS NODULOSA Struthiópteris Germánica. Matteùccia struthiópteris

Fronds two to eight feet high, growing in a crown; broadly lanceolate, pinnate, the numerous pinnæ deeply pinnatifid, narrowed toward the channeled stipe. Fertile fronds shorter, pinnate with margins of the pinnæ revolute into a necklace form containing the sori. Ostrich Fern [Illustration: Ostrich Fern. Sterile Fronds (New Hampshire)] The rootstocks send out slender, underground stolons which bear fronds the next year. Sterile fronds appear throughout the summer, fertile ones in July. Seen from

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OSMÚNDA

The osmundas are tall swamp ferns growing in large crowns from strong, thickened rootstocks; the fruiting portion of the fertile frond much contracted and quite unlike the sterile. Sporangia large, globular, short-stalked, borne on the margin of the divisions and opening into two valves by a longitudinal slit. Ring obscure. (From Osmunder, a name of the god Thor.)...

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(1) FLOWERING FERN, ROYAL FERN Osmúnda regàlis. Osmunda regàlis, var. SPECTÀBILIS

Fronds pale green, one to six feet high; sterile part bipinnate, each pinna having numerous pairs of lance-oblong, serrulate pinnules alternate along the midrib. Fruiting panicle of the frond six to twelve inches long, brown when mature and sometimes leafy. A magnificent fern, universally admired. Well named by the great Linnæus, regalis , royal, indeed, in its type of queenly beauty. The wine-colored stipes of the uncoiling fronds shooting up in early spring, lifting gracefully their pink pinnæ

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(2) INTERRUPTED FERN. CLAYTON'S FERN Osmunda Claytoniàna

Fronds pinnate, one to five feet high. Pinnæ cut into oblong, obtuse lobes. Fertile fronds taller than the sterile, having from one to five pairs of intermediate pinnæ contracted and bearing sporangia. Interrupted Fern [Illustration: Interrupted Fern. Osmunda Claytoniàna ] The fronds have a bluish-green tint; they mature their spores about the last of May. The sterile fronds may be distinguished from those of the cinnamon fern by not having retained, like those, a tuft of wool at the base of eac

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(3) CINNAMON FERN. BRAKES

Osmunda cinnamomea Fronds one to six feet long, pinnate. Pinnæ lanceolate, pinnatifid with oblong, obtuse divisions. Fertile pinnæ on separate fronds, which are contracted and covered with brown sporangia. Cinnamon Fern [Illustration: Cinnamon Fern. Leaf Gradations] Cinnamon Fern [Illustration: Cinnamon Fern. Gradations from Sterile to Fertile Fronds] Cinnamon Fern [Illustration: Cinnamon Fern, var. frondosa ] Each fertile frond springs up at first outside the sterile ones, but is soon surrounde

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CURLY GRASS. Schizàea pusílla

Small, slender ferns with linear or thready leaves, the sterile, one to two inches high and tortuous or "curled like corkscrews"; fertile fronds longer, three to five inches, and bearing at the top about five pairs of minute, fruited pinnæ. Sporangia large, ovoid, sessile in a double row along the single vein of the narrow divisions of the fertile leaves, and provided with a complete apical ring. ( Schizæa , from a Greek root meaning to split, alluding to the cleft leaves of foreign species.) Cu

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CLIMBING FERN. HARTFORD FERN Lygòdium palmàtum

Fronds slender, climbing or twining, three to five feet long. The lower pinnæ (frondlets) sterile, roundish, five to seven lobed, distant in pairs with simple veins; the upper fertile, contracted, several times forked, forming a terminal panicle; the ultimate segments crowded, and bearing the sporangia, which are similar to those of curly grass, and fixed to a veinlet by the inner side next the base, one or rarely two covered by each indusium. (From the Greek meaning like a willow twig [pliant],

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IV ADDER'S TONGUE FAMILY OPHIOGLOSSÀCEÆ

Plants more or less fern-like consisting of a stem with a single leaf. In Ophioglóssum the leaf or sterile segment is entire, the veins reticulated and the sporangia in a simple spike. In Botrýchium the sterile segment is more or less incised, the veins free, and the sori in a panicle or compound or rarely simple spike. Sporangia naked, opening by a transverse slit. Spores copious, sulphur-yellow. ADDER'S TONGUE. Ophioglóssum vulgàtum Rootstock erect, fleshy. Stem simple, two to ten inches high,

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Botrýchium

Rootstock very short, erect with clustered fleshy roots; the base of the sheathed stalk containing the bud for the next year's frond. Fertile frond one to three pinnate, the contracted divisions bearing a double row of sessile, naked, globular sporangia, opening transversely into two valves. Sterile segment of the frond ternately or pinnately divided or compound. Veins free. Spores copious, sulphur yellow. (The name in Greek means a cluster of grapes, alluding to the grape-like clusters of the s

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(1) MOONWORT. Botrýchium Lunària

Very fleshy, three to ten inches high, sterile segment subsessile, borne near the middle of the plant, oblong, simple pinnate with three to eight pairs of lunate or fan-shaped divisions, obtusely crenate, the veins repeatedly forking; fertile segment panicled, two to three pinnate. Moonwort [Illustration: Moonwort Botrychium Lunaria ] Moonwort [Illustration: Moonwort. Botrychium Lunaria . Details] The moonwort was formerly associated with many superstitions and was reputed to open all locks at a

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(2) LITTLE GRAPE FERN. Botrychium símplex

Fronds two to four inches high, very variable. Sterile segment short-petioled, usually near the middle, simple and roundish or pinnately three to seven lobed. Veins all forking from the base. Fertile segments simple or one to two pinnate, apex of both segments erect in the bud. In moist woods and fields, Canada to Maryland and westward; Conway and Plainfield, Mass., Berlin and Litchfield, Conn. Rare. According to Pringle it is "abundantly scattered over Vermont, its habitat usually poor soil, es

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(3) LANCE-LEAVED GRAPE FERN Botrychium lanceolàtum BOTRÝCHIUM ANGUSTISEGMÉNTUM

Frond two to nine inches high, both sterile and fertile segments at the top of the common stalk. Sterile segment triangular, twice pinnatifid, the acute lobes lanceolate, incised or toothed, scarcely fleshy, resembling a very small specimen of the rattlesnake fern. Fertile segment slightly overtopping the sterile, two to three pinnate and spreading. One of the constant companions of the rattlesnake fern. New England to Lake Superior. July. Little Grape Fern [Illustration: Little Grape Fern Botry

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(4) MATRICARY FERN Botrychium ramòsum. Botrychium matricariæfòlium

Fronds small, one to twelve inches high. Sterile segment above the middle, usually much divided. Fertile segment twice or thrice pinnate. Apex of both segments turned down in the bud, the sterile overtopping and clasping the fertile one. The Matricary Fern [Illustration: The Matricary Fern Botrychium ramosum ] The matricary fern differs from the preceding in ripening its spores about a month earlier, in having its sterile frond stalked, besides being a taller and fleshier plant. It may also be n

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(5) COMMON GRAPE FERN Botrychium oblìquum. Botrychium ternàtum, var. oblìquum BOTRYCHIUM DISSÉCTUM, var. OBLÌQUUM

Rootstock short, its base including the buds of succeeding years. Fronds two to twelve inches or more high. Leafy or sterile segment triangular, ternate, long-petioled, springing from near the base of the plant, and spreading horizontally. From the main leafstock grow several pairs of stalked pinnæ, with the divisions ovate-oblong, acutish, crenate-serrulate, obliquely cordate or subcordate. Fertile segment taller, erect, about three times pinnate, maturing its fruit in autumn. Occasionally two

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(6) TERNATE GRAPE FERN Botrýchium ternàtum, var. intermèdium Botrýchium oblìquum, var. intermèdium

Leaf more divided than in oblìquum and the numerous segments not so long and pointed, but large, fleshy, ovate or obovate (including var. austràle ), crenulate, and more or less toothed. Sandy soil, pastures and open woods. More northerly in its range--New England and New York. Var. rutaefòlium . More slender, rarely over six or seven inches high; sterile segment about two inches broad, its divisions few, broadly ovate, the lowest sublunate. The first variety passes insensibly into the second. T

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(7) RATTLESNAKE FERN. Botrychium virginiànum

Fronds six inches to two feet high. Sterile segment sessile above the middle of the plant, broadly triangular, thin, membranaceous, ternate. Pinnules lanceolate, deeply pinnatifid; ultimate segments oblong or lanceolate and scarcely or not at all spatulate. Fertile part long-stalked, two to three pinnate, its ultimate segments narrow arid thick, nearly opaque in dried specimens. Mature sporangia varying from dark yellow-brown to almost black. Open sporangia close again and are flattened or of a

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FILMY FERN. BRISTLE FERN Trichómanes Boschiànum. Trichómanes rádicans

Rootstocks creeping, filiform, stipes ascending, one to three inches long, thin, very delicate, pellucid, much divided, oblong-lanceolate, bipinnatifid. Rachis narrowly winged. Sporangia clustered around the slender bristle, which is the prolongation of a vein, and surrounded by a vase-like, slightly two-lipped involucre. On moist, dripping sandstone cliffs, Kentucky to Alabama. Often called the "Killarney fern," as it grows about the lakes of Killarney in Ireland. Filmy Fern [Illustration: Frui

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FERN LITERATURE

AMERICAN FERN JOURNAL. 1910. The American Fern Society. (Annual subscription, $1.25.) BELAIRS, NONA. Hardy Ferns. Smith, Elder and Co. London, 1865. BRITISH FERN GAZETTE. BRITTEN, JAMES. European Ferns. Colored Plates. Cassell &amp; Co. London. Quarto. BUTTERS, F.K. Athyrium. Study of the American Lady Ferns. Rhodora, September, 1917. CAMPBELL, D.H. Structure and Development of the Mosses and Ferns. Macmillan &amp; Co. 1905. Ed. 2. CLUTE, WILLARD N. Our Ferns in Their Haunts. Frederick A

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TIMES OF THE FRUITING OF FERNS

Compiled from Dodge's "Ferns and Fern Allies of New England"...

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NOTE

The student should have some idea of the terms genus , species and variety , although they are not capable of exact definition. A species , or kind, is in botany the unit of classification. It embraces all such individuals as may have originated in a common stock. Such individuals bear an essential resemblance to each other, as well as to their common parent in all their parts. E.g., the Cinnamon fern is a kind or species of fern with the fronds evidently of one kind, and of a common origin, and

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CHECK LIST OF THE FERNS OF NORTHEASTERN AMERICA

In the following list the first name is usually the one adopted in the text, and those that follow are synonyms. Names printed in small capitals are those of the newer nomenclature, now adopted at the Gray Herbarium but not in the Manual....

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