Ebony spleenwort
Encyclopedia
Asplenium
Asplenium is a genus of about 700 species of ferns, often treated as the only genus in the family Aspleniaceae, though other authors consider Hymenasplenium separate, based on molecular phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences, a different chromosome count, and structural differences in the rhizomes...
with a peculiar distribution in two continent
Continent
A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are : Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Plate tectonics is...
s. In North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
it is native almost throughout the eastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and in the far southeast of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
; there are also isolated small populations in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
and the West Indies. It is also native in tropical and subtropical southern Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, on the opposite side of the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
.
It is a small plant with single-pinnate frond
Frond
The term frond refers to a large, divided leaf. In both common usage and botanical nomenclature, the leaves of ferns are referred to as fronds and some botanists restrict the term to this group...
s up to 50 cm long, with 15-45 pairs of pinnae, these triangular, 10-25 mm long and 3-5 mm broad at the base. It is distinctive by the presence of fertile fronds that are rigidly vertical and much longer than the arching sterile fronds.
It tolerates a wide variety of habitats. It may be found in recent or old disturbed sites in soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
and may also be found on rock and masonry. This plant will frequently colonize masonry in urban and rural sites. It prefers calcareous rocks (or mortar joints) but will also grow on subacid rock.
The ebony spleenwort is sometimes grown as a terrarium or garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
plant. It is also known to hybridize with several other spleenworts (see Asplenium hybrids
Asplenium hybrids
The fern genus Asplenium is well-known for its hybridization capacity, especially in temperate zones.-North American Asplenium Hybrid Complex:...
).
An especially large and elaborate form of this fern is known as f. bacculum-rubrum (after Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
).