Western Swordfern (Edible Plants on UC Berkeley Campus)

Western Swordfern

Polystichum munitum

Common names ⁴

More info for the term: fern

western sword fern
Christmas fern
sword holly fern

Description ⁵

More info for the terms: fern, fronds, rhizome, sori

Western sword fern is a relatively large, evergreen, long-lived fern
with long fronds arching from a short, scaly, erect rhizome [39,63,69].
The sword-shaped fronds are from 20 to 72 inches long (50-180 cm) and
divided pinnately [32]. Individual fronds live for several years and
remain attached to the rhizome after withering [32]. The largest
leaflets or pinnae are 1.2 to 16 inches long (3-15 cm). Spores are
borne in clusters called sori that are found between the midline and the
edge of the middle and upper pinnae [39,69].

Amount of light received influences western sword fern form. Following
disturbance that removes the overstory or when plants occasionally
establish on rocky outcrops at high elevations, the fronds are dwarfed
and more erect. This sun form of western swordfern also has pinnae that
are crisped and crowded so that they overlap and appear imbricated.
When shaded again, these plants return to normal form [69].

In southwestern British Columbia the rhizomes of western sword fern were
found to be vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal, although some plants have
been found with nonmycorrhizal rhizomes [8].

Distribution ⁶

More info for the term: fern

Western sword fern grows along the west coast from southeastern Alaska
to Santa Barbara County, California, and eastward through Washington and
northern Idaho into northwest Montana [39,40,69]. Disjunct populations
have been found in South Dakota and on Guadalupe Island off Baja
California [41,69,78]. In British Columbia, it is common west of the
Coast Mountains and on the Queen Charlotte Islands [28].

Habitat ⁷

Terrestrial, forest floor, only occasionally on rock, in mesic coniferous to moist, mixed evergreen forests; 0--2200m.

Edible ⁸

The roots of this fern, much like the woodfern, are edible raw or boiled in the spring.

Sources and Credits

(c) James Gaither, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/13892958@N07/2786984894
(c) Arthur Chapman, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/arthur_chapman/4932998101/
(c) J Brew, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/93452909@N00/340518924
Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/24627219
Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/24627229
Public Domain, http://eol.org/data_objects/24627221
(c) Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/21498380
(c) jihyunan, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

Range Map

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