Summer Ferns 2024

Silvery Spleenwort

Silvery Spleenwort, also known as Silvery Glade Fern (Deparia acrostichoides), is an attractive medium sized fern commonly found in moist shaded woods, and along streambanks and edges of wetlands (but not in wetlands). They grow in groups or masses, but individually, not in a clump. It looks a bit like Narrow-leaved Glade Fern or Lady Fern, and it has been classified with each of them at some point. It is now in the same family as Lady Fern (Athyriaceae). The key distinguishing feature I use to easily tell it is Silvery Spleenwort and not Lady Fern is all the fine silvery hairs all along the stem, even on the rachis and costa. Lady Fern has the dark scales on the lower stem, and none on the rest. Also, Silvery Glade has twice cut pinnae, while Lady is thrice cut (lacier). They both have sori in a sort of herringbone pattern.

This is one of the species of ferns we will see on our Fern Walk on Pisgah Mountain Rd in Gill next Sunday August 18th from 1-3pm. Check the Calendar announcement for more information on where to meet (Bartons Cove Campground parking lot). There are a lot of ferns along this road, and you will see them often enough to start to remember them and how to tell them apart.

Posted: to PV Fern News on Fri, Aug 9, 2024
Updated: Sat, Aug 10, 2024