Ophioglossaceae - Grape Fern Family
Botrychium virginianum (Rattlesnake Fern)
This is a small fern with thin membranaceous blades. It is 3 inches to 1.5 feet tall. The blade is broadly triangular in outline and about 3 times dissected. it has a single fertile complex which is erect and about the length of the leaf blade.
The rhizomes of this plant do not spread so the plant grows in place and usually only produces a single leaf each year.
Plants appear in the early spring, shed their spores in late spring when the fertile complex withers. The vegetative leaf stays until it withers in the fall.
The rhizomes of this plant do not spread so the plant grows in place and usually only produces a single leaf each year.
Plants appear in the early spring, shed their spores in late spring when the fertile complex withers. The vegetative leaf stays until it withers in the fall.