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Dryopteris marginalis
Also called Marginal Fern, Marginal Wood Fern, Leather Wood Fern, Marginal Shield Fern, Woodfern
Dryopteris marginalis, vernacularly known as the marginal shield fern or marginal wood fern, is a perennial species of fern found in damp shady areas throughout eastern North America, from Texas to Minnesota and Newfoundland. It favors moderately acid to circumneutral soils in cooler areas but is fairly drought-resistant once established. In the warmer parts of its range, it is most likely to be found on north-facing non-calcareous rock faces. It is common in many altitudes throughout its range, from high ledges to rocky slopes and stream banks. Marginal wood fern's name derives from the fact that the sori are located on the margins, or edges of the leaflets.
Dryopteris marginalis is grown in gardens in part to full shade. It is an evergreen non-spreading fern that forms a vase-shaped clump of leathery, deeply cut fronds. It is used in shade gardens, rock gardens, and native plantings. There are no serious insect or disease problems that affect it, and it is winter hardy in USDA zones 3–8.
Dryopteris marginalis is known to form hybrids with 10 other species, and some of the hybrids are common; they can be identified by the malformed spores and sori which are not quite on the margins of the leaves.
Dryopteris marginalis has a wide distribution in the northeastern US. It was found for the first time in Minnesota in 1981, and likely was part of the native flora for a long time but overlooked because of its rarity and its close resemblance to related species. It is listed as a threatened species in Minnesota, not so much because the species is currently threatened, but because there is only one population found on an east-facing bluff composed of sandstone that is capped with limestone. In other parts of its range it is found in woods, on talus-slopes, in rocky areas and walls, on wooded slopes and ravines, and at the edges of woods, streams and roads.
Dryopteris hasseltii · Hay Scented Buckler Fern · Scaly Male Fern · Coastal woodfern · Mountain woodfern · Spinulose woodfern · Log fern · Cinnamon woodfern · Clinton's woodfern · Large Kidney Fern · Shield Fern · Serpent woodfern
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Dryopteris marginalis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
