Sword fern

Last updated February 25, 2019

Sword fern is a common name for several ferns and may refer to:

A fern is a member of a group of vascular plants that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissues that conduct water and nutrients and in having life cycles in which the sporophyte is the dominant phase. Like other vascular plants, ferns have complex leaves called megaphylls, that are more complex than the microphylls of clubmosses. Most ferns are leptosporangiate ferns, sometimes referred to as true ferns. They produce coiled fiddleheads that uncoil and expand into fronds. The group includes about 10,560 known extant species.

Nephrolepis , a tropical genus of ferns, especially:
- Nephrolepis exaltata , commonly cultivated as a houseplant, including the Boston fern
Polystichum , a cosmopolitan genus of ferns, especially:
- Polystichum munitum , native to western North America
Polystichum munitum, the western swordfern, is an evergreen fern native to western North America, where it is one of the most abundant ferns. It occurs along the Pacific coast from southeastern Alaska to southern California, and also inland east to southeastern British Columbia, northern Idaho and western Montana, with disjunctive populations in northern British Columbia, Canada; the Black Hills in South Dakota, United States; and Guadalupe Island off of Baja California, Mexico. Western swordfern is known to have locally naturalized in parts of Great Britain and Ireland.

Nephrolepis is a genus of about 30 species of ferns in the family Nephrolepidaceae.

Nephrolepis exaltata, known as the sword fern or Boston fern, is a species of fern in the family Lomariopsidaceae native to tropical regions throughout the world. An evergreen perennial herbaceous plant, it can reach as high as 40–90 centimetres (16–35 in), and in extreme cases up to 1.5 metres. It is also known as the Boston swordfern, wild Boston fern, Boston Fern, Boston Blue Bell Fern, tuber ladder fern, or fishbone fern.

A houseplant is a plant that is grown indoors in places such as residences and offices. Houseplants are commonly grown for decorative purposes, but studies have also shown them to have positive psychological effects. Houseplants also help with indoor air purification. Some species, and the soil-dwelling microbes associated with them, reduce indoor air pollution by absorbing volatile organic compounds including benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene. While generally toxic to humans, such pollutants are absorbed by the plant and its soil-dwelling microbes without harm. Common houseplants are usually tropical or semi-tropical epiphytes, succulents or cacti.

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The Dryopteridaceae are a family of leptosporangiate ferns in the order Polypodiales. They are known colloquially as the wood ferns. They comprise about 1700 species and have a cosmopolitan distribution. They may be terrestrial, epipetric, hemiepiphytic, or epiphytic. Many are cultivated as ornamental plants. The largest genera are Elaphoglossum (600), Polystichum (260), Dryopteris (225), and Ctenitis (150). These four genera contain about 70% of the species. Dryopteridaceae diverged from the other families in eupolypods I about 100 million years ago.

Cyrtomium is a genus of about 15-20 species of ferns in the family Dryopteridaceae, native to Asia, Africa, and the Pacific Ocean islands (Hawaii). It is very closely related to the genus Polystichum, with recent research suggesting it should be included within it.

Holly fern or hollyfern is a common name for several different species and genera of ferns:

Polystichum setiferum, the soft shield-fern, is an evergreen or semi-evergreen fern native to southern and western Europe.

Polystichum acrostichoides, commonly denominated Christmas fern, is a perennial, evergreen fern native to eastern North America, from Nova Scotia, Canada west to Minnesota and south to Florida and eastern Texas. It is one of the commonest ferns in eastern North America, being found in moist and shady habitats in woodlands, rocky slopes, and stream banks. The common name derives from the evergreen fronds which are often still green at Christmas in December.

Frond dimorphism refers to a difference in ferns between the fertile and sterile fronds. Since ferns, unlike flowering plants, bear spores on the leaf blade itself, this may affect the form of the frond itself. In some species of ferns, there is virtually no difference between the fertile and sterile fronds, such as in the genus Dryopteris, other than the mere presence of the sori, or fruit-dots, on the back of the fronds. Some other species, such as Polystichum acrostichoides, or some ferns of the genus Osmunda, feature dimorphism on a portion of the frond only. Others, such as some species of Blechnum and Woodwardia, have fertile fronds that are markedly taller than the sterile. Still others, such as Osmunda cinnamomea, or plants of the family Onocleaceae, have fertile fronds that are completely different from the sterile.

<i>Nephrolepis obliterata</i> species of plant

Nephrolepis obliterata, the Kimberley Queen fern, is a species of fern in the family Lomariopsidaceae. This fern originated in Australia, but is relatively easy to cultivate indoors worldwide.

Polystichum aleuticum, the Aleutian holly fern or Aleutian shield fern, is an endangered species of the Polystichum genus and currently consisting of a small, vulnerable population endemic found only on Adak Island, Alaska, a remote island of the Aleutian Islands chain in the northern Pacific Ocean. In 1992, 112 specimens existed in the wild, and a recovery plan was implemented.

Polystichum dudleyi is a species of fern known by the common name Dudley's sword fern. It is endemic to California, where it is known from the forests of the central and southern California Coast Ranges.

Polystichum imbricans is a species of fern known by the common names narrowleaf swordfern and imbricate sword fern. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to southern California, where it grows in rocky habitat in coastal and inland mountain ranges and foothills. This fern produces several erect linear or lance-shaped leaves up to 80 centimeters long. Each leaf is made up of many narrow, overlapping, sometimes twisting leaflets each 2 to 4 centimeters long. The leaflets have toothed edges. This fern readily forms hybrids, some of which are fertile and are considered separate species, such as Polystichum californicum, its hybrid with P. dudleyi.

Polystichum proliferum, commonly known as mother shield fern is an Australian endemic fern. The genus name Polystichum is derived from Greek poly - many, and stichos - rows referring to the many rows of sori. The species name is derived from Latin, Proli – offspring and fer - bearing referring to the proliferous buds, a prominent feature of the species.

Polystichum vestitum, commonly known as the prickly shield fern or pūnui (Maori), is a hardy, evergreen or semi-evergreen ground fern.

Nephrolepis cordifolia, is a fern native to northern Australia and Asia. It has many common names including fishbone fern,tuberous sword fern,tuber ladder fern, erect sword fern, narrow sword fern and ladder fern, and herringbone fern. It is indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands where it is known as kupukupu, okupukupu or ni'ani'au It is similar to the related fern Nephrolepis exaltata.

Polypodium is a genus of between 75-100 species of true ferns, widely distributed throughout the world, with the highest species diversity in the tropics. The name is derived from Ancient Greek poly (πολύ) "many" + podion (πόδιον) "little foot", on account of the foot-like appearance of the rhizome and its branches. They are commonly called polypodies or rockcap ferns, but for many species unique vernacular names exist.