Maidenhair Fern, Adiantum pedatum
Pteridaceae or Bracken Family
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An elegant fern. Stalks up to about 2 ft tall, smooth, shiny, dark brown to black. Leaves flat, divided into two sections that curve backwards into a circular or horse-shoe shape. Oval leaflets arising on the outer side of each section, divided again into sub-leaflets that are not opposite each other. Spores from small, oval fruitdots on the undersides of the margins of the sub-leaflets.
A native fern of rich woodlands. In Wildwood, occasional in the forests on the western slope. The way the leaves curve backwards from the stalk is very distinctive and the easiest way to identify this fern. |
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