Bracken fern (<i >Pteridium aquilinum</i>) with inset

Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) with inset

Common bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) fern grows from large, dense, woody rhizomes and forms deciduous, stipitate (stalked), erect-to-spreading fronds with nonanastomosing veins. The pinnae are stalked, opposite or subopposite (inset). Fronds can range in length from 0.5 m (1.6 feet) to 4.5 m (14.7 feet).

Courtesy of Dr. Bryan Stegelmeier.