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Osmunda claytoniana L.

Interrupted fern

KingdomPlantaePlants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
SubkingdomTracheobiontaVascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
DivisionPteridophytaFerns
ClassFilicopsida“Leptosporangiate” (has to do with how their spores form) ferns—includes most ferns
OrderPolypodialesPolypod ferns
FamilyOsmundaceae
GenusOsmunda
Speciesclaytoniana

About plant names...

Interrupted? How can a fern be interrupted? The answer seems a little silly to me: brown fertile leaflets "interrupt" the green sterile leaflets on larger fronds. These ferns are natives of eastern Asia and North America.

Identification: Fern fronds are up to 3′ (90 cm) long and 8″ (20 cm) wide. Spore-bearing leaflets are brown, appearing in the middle of the sterile green fronds, the most obvious identifying characteristic. The leaf stalk has a round cross-section.

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

Interrupted fern, Osmunda claytoniana, in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, by Circeus, 7/30/2005.

Online References:

The Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

KgNaturePhotography.com

Wikipedia

References:

Cobb, Boughton, Farnsworth, Elizabeth & Lowe, Cheryl, Peterson Field Guides: Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005, p. 174

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/11/2013 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 7 × 11″ (17 × 26 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/31/2010 · Mt. Lebanon St., Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/13/2012 · Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, Lowell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 1 × 1½′ (34 × 52 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/25/2023 · Maquoit Bay Conservation Land, Brunswick, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

9/13/2020 · Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/11/2013 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 11 × 17″ (28 × 42 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/18/2021 · Cathance River Nature Preserve, Topsham, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (11 × 17 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/18/2012 · Mine Falls Park, Nashua, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

9/13/2020 · Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Maine · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/9/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/20/2021 · Maquoit Bay Preserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 3 × 5″ (8.4 × 12 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 15 × 10″ (39 × 26 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

8/22/2020 · Crossbill Trail, Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Maine · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)

 

Osmunda claytoniana description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 11 Jul 2023.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.


 

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

Once the spore-bearing fertile portions are no longer needed, they wither and disappear, leaving the “interruption.” · 6/17/2016 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State, Ashby, Mass­a­chu­setts

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/20/2023 · Knight’s Pond Preserve, Cumberland, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

8/28/2020 · Jack’s and Litchfield Trails, Chase Reserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/13/2012 · Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, Lowell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 9 × 14″ (23 × 35 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/20/2021 · Maquoit Bay Preserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 6 × 9″ (16 × 23 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/9/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 2 × 1′ (62 × 41 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/9/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/12/2023 · Viles Arboretum, Augusta, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/9/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/13/2012 · Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, Lowell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 12 × 17″ (29 × 44 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/13/2012 · Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, Lowell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 9 × 14″ (23 × 35 cm)

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

6/9/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)

5/18/2021 · Cathance River Nature Preserve, Topsham, Maine · ≈ 7 × 10″ (16 × 25 cm)

Range: Zones 3-8:

About this map...