Fragrant wood fern, dryoptère fragrante

Polypodium fragrans Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1089. 1753; Dryopteris fragrans var. remotiuscula (Komarov) Komarov

Leaves monomorphic, green through winter, 6--40 × 1--6 cm, old leaves persistent as gray or brown conspicuous clump at plant base (only in this species). Petiole 1/3 length of leaf, scaly throughout; scales dense, brown to red-brown. Blades green, linear-lanceolate, pinnate-pinnatifid to 2-pinnate, papery, densely scaly (only in this species) abaxially, glandular, aromatic when handled (only in this species). Pinnae ± in plane of blade, linear-oblong; basal pinnae linear-oblong, much reduced, basal pinnules longer than adjacent pinnules, basal basiscopic pinnule and basal acroscopic pinnule equal; pinnule margins crenately toothed. Sori midway between midvein and margin of segments. Indusia glandular. 2 n = 82.

Shaded cliffs and talus, often of limestone; 50--1800 m; Greenland; Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., Nfld., N.W.T., N.S., Ont., Que., Sask., Yukon; Alaska, Maine, Mich., Minn., N.H., N.Y., Vt., Wis.; Europe in n Finland; Asia in n, nw former Soviet republics.

Dryopteris fragrans is a northern species and is not closely related to the other species in North America. The only hybrid known to involve D . fragrans is with D . marginalis , producing D . × algonquinensis D. Britton.