THE LADY FERN AND ITS KIN. 189 



spore-bearing and diminished leaf surface in this spe- 

 cies. 



The narrow-leaved spleenwort is found from Quebec 

 to Wisconsin, Missouri and Tennessee. It is likeliest to 

 be found in woods that are free from undergrowth. Its 

 liking for wet places obtains for it the name of swamp 

 spleenwort in some places and it is also called Kidney-fern. 

 It is easily cultivated and makes a very pretty addition 

 to the fern garden where tall species with simply pin- 

 nate fronds are not common. 



There are probably less than a dozen species in the 

 genus Athyrium as it is at present defined. The generic 

 name is from a word meaning opened and refers to the 

 appearance of the sori. The origin of the name Asple- 

 nium is given in the chapter on the Rock Spleenworts, 



