coastal woodfern (Edible Plants on UC Berkeley Campus)

coastal woodfern

Dryopteris arguta

Description ³

Leaves monomorphic, green through winter, 25--90 × 8--30 cm. Petiole 1/4--1/3 length of leaf, scaly at least at base; scales scattered, light brown. Blade green to yellow-green, ovate-lanceolate, pinnate-pinnatifid to 2-pinnate at base, herbaceous, glandular. Pinnae ± in plane of blade, lance-oblong; basal pinnae deltate, not much reduced, basal pinnules ± same length as adjacent pinnules, basal basiscopic pinnule and basal acroscopic pinnule ± equal, pinnule margins serrate with spreading, spinelike teeth. Sori midway between midvein and margin of segments. Indusia lacking glands. 2 n = 82.

Distribution ⁴

Dryopteris arguta occurs chiefly in coastal areas from the extreme south of British Columbia (including the southeastern extremity of Vancouver Island) to Monterey County in California. Less frequently, this species is found in coastal ravines as far south as Baja California, Mexico. Although most frequently found in the coastal ranges, the species also occurs as far inland at the Lava Beds National Park, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park, Pinnacles National Monument and Joshua Tree National Monument. Disjunctive populations are found in Arizona, particularly in moist ravines of Gila County's Sierra Ancha and in the Superstition Mountains and Queens Creek areas of Pinal County.

Edible ⁵

The roots of this plant are edible either raw or boiled in the spring.

Sources and Credits

(c) brewbooks, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/brewbooks/6067214779/
(c) Joe Decruyenaere, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/38213125@N00/4435048721
(c) Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/5007690
(c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/7063187
(c) jihyunan, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

Range Map

iNat Map

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