Ebony spleenwort

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Asplenium platyneuron

Ebony spleenwort, a reference photo
Photo: Jaknouse · CC BY-SA 3.0 (licence)

Asplenium platyneuron (syn. Asplenium ebeneum), commonly known as ebony spleenwort or brownstem spleenwort, is a fern native to North America east of the Rocky Mountains and to South Africa. It takes its common name from its dark, reddish-brown, glossy stipe and rachis (leaf stalk and midrib), which support a once-divided, pinnate leaf. The fertile fronds, which die off in the winter, are darker green and stand upright, while the sterile fronds are evergreen and lie flat on the ground. An auricle at the base of each pinna points towards the tip of the frond. The dimorphic fronds and alternate, rather than opposite, pinnae distinguish it from the similar black-stemmed spleenwort.

From Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Is it poisonous?

We have no record of Ebony spleenwort being toxic, poisonous or venomous. That is not proof that it is safe. Never eat, touch or handle a wild plant, mushroom or animal on the strength of an identification; ask someone qualified.

Easily confused with

Classification

Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Polypodiopsida
Order
Polypodiales
Family
Aspleniaceae
Species
Asplenium platyneuron

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