THE MOONWORT AND ITS ALLIES. 

 



July to produce its new frond. The sterile part 

 is also evergreen. Intermediate forms are not 

 uncommon and the geographical distribution is 

 essentially the same. In view of these facts, it 

 seems best to regard it as only a variety of 

 obliquum. It probably attains its best devel- 

 opment in places where there is more moisture 

 than is agreeable to the type. Along the coast 

 it is nearly as plentiful as B. obliquum and pro- 

 duces luxuriant deeply- 

 cut blades. Inland the 

 blade tends to become 

 less dissected. 



Until recently botanists 

 have considered Our spe- 

 cies a variety of Botrych- 

 ium ternatum. The latter 

 was discovered in Japan 

 by Thunberg and there 

 seems to be good reasons 

 for believing ours to be a 

 different species. It is found from New 

 Brunswick and Ontario to Minnesota, Mex- 

 ico and Florida, frequenting shady fencerows 

 and swampy woods. There are four forms 

 in the West and one in the South that are 

 closely related to our species and are often 

 classed as varieties of it. Small forms from 

 New York and New England are sometimes 

 referred to B. Matricarice of Europe, 

 and a form with larger blades on 

 shorter stalks is the form interme- 

 dium. The species and the varieties 



Botrychiutn obliquum dissectum. 



