What's this fern? Northern Maidenhair fern

[SwampDonkey]

Ok here is a delicate little fern for you to ID.

The stems are purple, even retaining the purple color on dead plants in early spring. Very rare fern in my region. Sought after by plant robbers and nurseries. Found on moist, very rich, hardwood sites with dark soils. Associated with yellow birch, sugar maple, white ash, basswood and butternut cover. I know of two sites it exists on and yellow birch is a major component of the stand, and sugar maple is also significant.



If you live in an area where it is rare, don't harvest it please  

[Paul_H]

I'll guess Adiantum pedatum (Maidenhair Fern).

[SwampDonkey]

Hi Paul:

Your on a role today  

northern maiden hair fern

Not so difficult to identify I guess. I suspect its a much talked about plant. Quite distinct with its fraun display.

[Paul_H]

I've enjoyed the ID searches and it keeps me occupied and out of trouble.Until this weather lightens up,we're housebound

[Corley5]

Rare Huh?  We've got some in our woods on the farm and I know where's there's a bunch of it in the Pigeon River State Forest.  I've been told it's an indicator of excellent soil fertilitity.  What's it worth?  I've got some for sale

[SwampDonkey]

Hi Corley:

Probably not worth so much is areas where it isn't rare.

keyword given was ' rare '  

Ask the local nurseries and maybe you can supply them for $10.00 a plant. Don't steal it though. NO NO NO!  


And, yes its on the best growing sites you'll find around here. Also, our soils are calcareous because of an ancient inland sea which carved out the Saint John and Tobique rivers. I've found fossilized crustaceans and worms in the upper reaches of the Tobique (the River Don its called).  

[Ron Scott]

We have a bit of it here.

The Ecological Classification and Inventory System Field Guide for the Huron-Manistee National Forests uses it as an indicator species for herb-rich moraines, an ecosystem that has an ample supply of soil nuitrients and moisture, often supporting northern hardwood forests in our area.

[Corley5]

  $10.00 a plant would be pretty .  I could make out pretty good but I guess I'm not much into ferns especially digging them up

[Tom]

I've not seen any quite like that here, but, we do have a St. John's.

[SwampDonkey]

Yes Tom, I do tend to rample a bit at time  


St John's wort, btw?  

Or is that a river over there?

[SwampDonkey]

err  ramble a bit at times  


these things need grammer and spell checkers

[SwampDonkey]

Hi Tom:


You have a southern species, fraun arrangement is similar, but the leaflets are different shapes. I think its a bigger plant down there.

[Tom]

No purple veining here.  I've got lots of ferns of "kinda like" looks living under the house

Yep, The River.  The St. Johns runs from Blue Cypress Swamp down just below Dead-header's, north to Jacksonville where I live.  It's a long a pretty rascal.

[SwampDonkey]

Tom

Purple stems though on the fern? That's what I meant. Leaves are green as green can be, until old frosty bytes  

[SwampDonkey]

Hi Tom:

Getting off topic but here's a link to a map of the Saint John River watershed from DFO. The Tobique branches off to the northeast, fed by some major lakes. All our rivers start in the area of Mount Carleton (Appalachian Range), the highest peek in New Brunswick. (Its only 2693 feet ASL). The Aroostook, Alligash, and the Madawaska rivers feed in from Maine from the northwest.

http://www.mar.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/science/mactaquac/stjohn.html

Do you have a link to a map of your river?


regards

[Tom]

Can't seem to find a map right off hand, but will look some more.  Here are some articles that describe the 310 mile, North flowing river from West of Vero to Jacksonville.  It makes for some interesting reading.

http://www.jacksonvillestory.com/St.%20Johns%20River.htm

It amazes me that there is no more on the net than I've found.

Check out this coloring book.  It has more in it than all of the scientific write-ups. :-/

http://sjr.state.fl.us/programs/outreach/pubs/order/pdfs/cb_sjr.pdf

[Stephen_Wiley]

Due to weather issues causing power outages, just now getting a chance to respond.

Northern Maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum is very common around our part of the country.

[SwampDonkey]

HI Stephen:

Yes its Maiden Hair fern, Paul_H ID'd it awhile back. We seem to be chit chat'n more than sending queries about the plants we're ID'ing.

And the Moderator didn't change the topic yet.

Hi Tom  

[SwampDonkey]

Hi Tom:


I've been looking over your site above of the Saint John's River. Really   area. I like the stands of palm trees and those pictures of cypress are also   with those 'roots' that spike up out of the water for air. And there was a shot of marsh mallow flowers, now I know where the sugar puffy candy got its name. Although, the candy probably tastes better, especially when mixed in rice cripsy squares.  


We have quite few of those blue heron up here nesting in rookeries too.   They fly south in October, always liked watching them in the local creek, Preque Isle river, standing as still as tree snags. Then wooof, got me a trout.  
We have those Osprey too, they next on power lines and poles. I've seen them fish for grilse (immature salmon) from the Saint John River. They hover over the bars and swoop in when the fish go over the river bars in rising waters. I've seen them have to let go of alot of them, not enough lift in their wings with a big fish wigglin  

We also have a lake called Lake George which feeds the Saint John River here, its no where as big as yours. Grand Lake is too the south, 30 km x 5 km, approximately 40,000 acres, its our biggest lake.

There's quite alot to learn about the Saint John's and that site you gave me has tons on tourism too  

Nice place to live and swim with the alligators  

regards

[Tom]

This is a great place to live if you are a swamp person.  I am a swamp person  

We have a St. Mary's river too and it is the border of Fla. and Georgia.  I guess a lot of the names of things may have come from people who came down from the north in the early days of the country because there are a lot of similarities.

It's the Bald Eagle that I enjoy watching.  The fish in the saltwater as well as the freshwater and I've seen them drag Mullet from the water that didn't want to leave. There are tales of Eagles who have been drowned by a fish too big to lift from the water.  The story is that they can't open their talons enough to drop it  once they have been completely closed and the fish drags them into the water.  It doesn't sound too feasible to me but that is the tale.

Florida is full of things that a naturalists would enjoy.  There is The Everglades down south, which is/was a hundred mile wide river.  The Okeechobee is a 30 mile wide lake and the largest fresh water lake with its shores contained within one state in the USA. The Kissimmee river was once a wandering sheet of water that fed the Okeechobee until the Corps of Eng. channeled it.  The center of the state is high ground and built up on a limestone bed that dissolves and creates lakes and springs as clear as a crystal.  There is quite a sport of underwater spelunking here.  

The St. Johns flows north through many lakes as it empties the east coastal plain.  The water in the north of the state, especially that which runs out of the Okeefenokee Swamp to the St. Mary's and the Suwannee is "Black Water"   It is clear but so stained with tannin that it appears black. When viewed in a shallow area over white sand you can see that it is tea colored and red.