Name: |
- Botyrichium, from the Greek botrus
(botrys), "grape"; the Grape Ferns
- lunaria, from the Latin luna, "moon "
- Common Name, from the moon shaped leaflets
- Other common names include Botryche Lunaire (Qué), Lunaire,
Langue de cerf (Fr), Marinøkkel (Nor), Ketonoidanlukko
(Fin), Låsbräken, Låsgräs, Månlåsbräken,
Vanlig Låsbräken (Swe), Almindelig Månerude
(Dan), Tungljurt (Is), Echte Mondraute (Ger), Lus nam
Mìos (Gaelic), Himehanawarabi (Jpn)
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Taxonomy: |
- Kingdom Plantae, the Plants
- Division Polypodiophyta, the True Ferns
- Class Filicopsida
- Order Ophioglossales
- Family Ophioglossaceae, the Adder's Tongue or Succulent
Ferns
- Genus Botrychium, the Grape Ferns
- Taxonomic Serial Number: 17181
- Twelve species of Grape Fern (Botrychium
spp.) occur in Canoe Country, all but Rattlesnake Fern (Botrychium
virginianum) being rare or extremely rare. These are woodland
jewels, rarely seen.
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Description: |
- An exceedingly rare little succulent fern, held to be more commonly found
in fable and lore than in the wild. Usually less than 6" tall.
- Sterile Frond a single leaf, to 5", subdivided into four to six
pair, sometimes more, of half moon or fan shaped leaflets, closely spaced
or overlapping; smooth edged and commonly concave. Said to turn to minimize
sun exposure. Leaf appears in spring, dying in latter half of summer. Leaf
stalk under 1/4" or nonexistent.
- Fertile frond slightly taller, rising from base and arching over
the single compound leaf; large spores in pendant clusters at tip. Spores
borne May/June.
- Stem only about 2" long, hollow and fleshy.
- Rootstalk upright; roots few, short, horizontally spreading.
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Identification: |
- Identifiable as a Moonwort by its fan-shaped leaflets.
- Distinguished from other North Woods Moonworts by its broad and overlapping
leaflets.
- Field Marks
- Diminutive size
- Succulent stem
- Upright growth habit
- Single leaf with "half moon" leaflets
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Distribution: |
- Greenland to Alaska; south to New York, Minnesota, and Arizona. Also,
South America, Eurasia, New Zealand, and Australia.
- In Minnesota, Lake and Cook counties on the North Shore, Lake of the
Woods, and deciduous woods of Cass, Clearwater, and Norman counties.
- Moonwort is listed as threatened in Minnesota.
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Habitat: |
- Mossy talus, ledges and rocky hillsides.
- Open fields, occasionally forests in southern occurrences
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History: |
- Considered to be a plant with magical powers, gathered by moonlight
and used by necromancers in their incantations to raise the dead.
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Uses: |
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Reproduction: |
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Propagation: |
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Cultivation: |
- Hardy to USDA Zone 2 (average minimum annual temperature -50ºF)
- Generally not suitable for the home garden.
- Not available commercially and too rare to be collected from the wild.
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Last Updated on
26 February, 2004
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