Monilophytes (ferns): Leptosporangiate Ferns (true ferns): Polypodiales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Polypodium virginianum
FAMILY
Polypodiaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Polypodium from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Polypodium virginianum
FAMILY
Polypodiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Polypodium virginianum
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 014-01-001:
Polypodium virginianum FAMILY Polypodiaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Ferns of the Southeastern States (Small, 1938)
Polypodium virginianum
COMMON NAME:
Common Rockcap Fern, Rock Polypody
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_povu3_001_lvd
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JK Marlow jkm0304g_01
April Oconee County SC
Sumter National Forest: Andrew Pickens Ranger District
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JK Marlow jkm0405k_16
May Sevier County TN
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
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Emily B. Sessa ebspvirgianum_2127
July
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Emily B. Sessa ebspvirgianum_2242
July
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Emily B. Sessa ebspvirgianum_2249
July
Blade leathery, to 3" wide, widest near the middle or evenly wide, per Peterson Field Guide to Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America.
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JK Marlow jkm0307g_19
July Greenville County SC
Jones Gap State Park
P. appalachianum & P. virginianum somewhat cryptic, and field id problematic, per Weakley's Flora (2015).
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JK Marlow jkm180828_4315
August Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
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JK Marlow jkm180828_4316
August Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
Leaf blade without scales on lower surface (vs. Pleopeltis densely scaly), per Weakley's Flora (2015).
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Emily B. Sessa ebspvirgianum_4881
September
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JK Marlow jkm150927_216
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
Lobes diminishing evenly & rapidly in size to a prominent tip at blade end, per Peterson Field Guide to Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America.
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JK Marlow jkm150927_219
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
Large, round, pale brown sori, more numerous on upper pinnae, per Peterson Field Guide to Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Polypodium virginianum
FAMILY
Polypodiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Polypodium virginianum
FAMILY
Polypodiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Polypodium virginianum
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 014-01-001:
Polypodium virginianum
FAMILY
Polypodiaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Ferns of the Southeastern States (Small, 1938)
Polypodium virginianum
1132
Fern/Fern ally
Perennial
Habitat: Moist rocks, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Mountains of GA & NC and in NC Piedmont (uncommon to rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Evergreen
Pinnatifid
Leaves in linear rows on widely spreading and creeping rhizome
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Field Guide to the Ferns and Other Pteridophytes of Georgia (Snyder & Bruce, 1986) p040
- Ferns of Alabama (Short & Spaulding, 2012) p283
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p114
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p107
- Peterson Field Guide to Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America p194
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