I ran into Daniel Mosquin, who suggested that I might want to see the Woodwardia in the Rainforest Garden. He showed me a beautiful photo, which I was not able to remember long enough to decide which fern that was. Here are some I found. This is the one I think might be Woodwardia fimbriata, giant chain fern. Could someone confirm that? Of course, I didn't know to look at the back of the leaves for the giant chains. And are these leaves considered double-pinnate? See below; it's Athyrium felix-femina What confused me is this fern that is once-more pinnate than the one above, so 3-pinnate? And what is the name of this? See below; it's Pteridium aquilinum I found a sign near this one, but I'd already twice photographed handy labels that were clearly for the wrong plant. So I'm not trusting labels for plants I can't figure out. But it might be the right one - Matteuccia struthiopteris? Ostrich fern. This ID is right.
#1 looks like an Athyrium species - definitely not Woodwardia fimbriata, which (as its name 'Giant' implies!) has fronds a couple of metres long #2 is Bracken Pteridium aquilinum #3 is a Dryopteris species or possibly Matteuccia struthiopteris
I'll try again. I remember back of pond, at the end along the fence. I saw the photo. What more could you have done except escort me, and I had an agenda I wanted to be sure to accomplish before my parking time ran out. You need a better listener.
You need to go beyond the pond, on the path along the fenceline. Should be somewhere between 10 and 20 steps after the junction with the path that encircles the pond.
Aha - they knew I was coming, put two labels on the Woodwardia fimbriata. I was trying to figure out the chain thing on the back of the leaves, have darkened the last photo until I think I can see what that means. It's just spring - these fronds aren't even a meter long yet. I was with Shirley Willard, who noticed it right away as something out of the ordinary. I also paid attention to Osmundastrum cinnamomeum. It's native to North and South America and Asia, is growing in the Asa Gray Grove in the North Garden. The brown things are the emerging fertile fronds.
You won't be able to see "the chain thing on the back of the leaves" there - that's only a young plant, not producing sori yet. You'll need to wait a few years until it is old enough to produce sori, as they're what gives it the name; see this pic.
Oh good, thanks Michael. I did see photos like that, didn't liken those to "chains" and didn't think they were unique to this genus. I thought the leaf markings were more remarkable (and chain-like, similar to a knit stitch). I was never good at metaphor.
Shirley Willard took better photos of the Woodwardia fimbriata, and the incipient chains are visible on the second and third photos.
Here are two more photos of the Woodwardia fimbriata. The second one is from two weeks ago, to show the leaf tip. Isn't that what's unusual about this fern, that the rachis is round until the tip and then it appears to widen out to look like the rachis on the pinnae? Maybe it just is a terminal pinna, but the wide rachis on the pinnae and on the leaf tip seem so distinctive.
I had trouble finding the Woodwardia fimbriata again this year, but there is a new PBotD on it, in which Daniel Mosquin posted a photo in the comments showing the location. Woodwardia fimbriata Here are a couple of photos to prove that I found it.
I walked right over to the Woodwardia fimbriata today! @Michael F said last year that these leaf markings would not be real sori chains yet on this, but they look like pretty good practice chains.
