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Maidenhair Fern
Adiantum pedatum
• Family: Pteridaceae
• Habitat: rich woodlands, often on limestone soil
• Height: 12-18 inches
• Location of spores: outer edges of leaflets (see bottom photo)
• Stipe (leaf stalk): thin and wiry; black or dark brown
• Growth pattern: random
• Persistence: deciduous
Maidenhair fern seen from above.
Underside of a frond, showing the spore-bearing structures. The edge of the subleaflet is rolled around the spores.