| GROUP VI | FERTILE AND STERILE FRONDS LEAF-LIKE |
instead of tapering base of the frond, by the strongly revolute margins of the fertile frond, and by its long stalk.
From the Massachusetts Fern it may be distinguished by its forked veins, the less revolute margins of the fertile frond, and by its thicker texture and deeper green.
39. MASSACHUSETTS FERN
Aspidium simulatum (Dryopteris simulata)
New Hampshire to the Indian Territory, in wooded swamps. One to more than three feet high.
Fronds.—Oblong-lance-shaped, little or not at all narrowed at the base, rather thin, pinnate; pinnæ lance-shaped, cut into oblong, obtuse segments, which are slightly reflexed in the fertile fronds, veins not forked; fruit-dots rather large, somewhat distant; indusium "withering-persistent."
This species closely resembles the Marsh Fern. The less revolute margins of the fertile frond, the simple veins, its thinner texture, and its more distant fruit-dots aid in its identification. It is found in woodland swamps from New Hampshire to the Indian Territory.
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