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norther maidenhair
northern maidenhair (Adiantum pedatum)
Photo © John Hilty
Features and Behaviors
FEATURES
The northern maidenhair has curved, flat fronds on thin stalks. Each flat frond may attain a length of more than 10 inches. Leaflets are blue-green and arranged five or six per each branch of stalk. The rachis is red-brown. The stipe is smooth and black or dark brown. It may grow to 20 inches in length. The fiddleheads are dark red.
BEHAVIORS
The northern maidenhair may be found statewide in Illinois. It grows in moist, shaded, rich woodlands, especially in ravines or under wet, rock banks. Spores are produced June through September.
Illinois Range
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pteridophyta
Class: Filicopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Family: Pteridaceae
Illinois Status: common, native
