Plantae > Tracheophyta > Polypodiopsida > Polypodiales > Dryopteridaceae > Dryopteris > Dryopteris fragrans

Dryopteris fragrans (fragrant woodfern)

Synonyms:

Attributes

Allergen Potential [1]  Medium
Edible [2]  May be edible. See the Plants For A Future link below for details.
Hazards [2]  Although we have found no reports for this species, a number of ferns contain carcinogens so some caution is advisable; The fresh plant contains thiaminase, an enzyme that robs the body of its vitamin B complex. In small quantities this enzyme will do no harm to people eating an adequate diet that is rich in vitamin B, though large quantities can cause severe health problems. The enzyme is destroyed by heat or thorough drying, so cooking the plant will remove the thiaminase; However, there have been reports for other species of ferns suggesting that even cooked fronds can have a long term harmful effect. Some caution is therefore advised.
Leaf Type [2]  Evergreen
Lifespan [2]  Perennial
Structure [2]  Fern
Usage [2]  The plant has been used as a bedding;
Height [2]  8 inches (0.2 m)
View Plants For A Future Record : Dryopteris fragrans

Protected Areas

External References

USDA Plant Profile

NatureServe Explorer

Citations

Attributes / relations provided by
♦ 1Derived from Allergy-Free Gardening OPALS™, Thomas Leo Ogren (2000)
♦ 2Plants For A Future licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
Species taxanomy provided by GBIF Secretariat (2022). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-06-13; License: CC BY 4.0