rROIIP II FERTILE FRONDS PARTIALLY LEAF-LIKE, 

 URUUr FERTILE PORTION UNLIKE REST OF FROND 



dations of ruthless collectors, and, to some extent, 

 probably, the ravages of fire. The plant is in its 

 prime in early fall, but may be looked for up to the 

 time of killing frosts." 



8. ADDER'S TONGUE 



Ophioglossum vulgatum 



Canada to New Jersey and Kentucky, in moist meadows. Two 

 inches to one foot high. 



Sterile portion. — An ovate, fleshy leaf. 



Fertile portion. — A simple spike, usually long-stalked. 



The unprofessional fern collector is likely to 

 agree with Gray in considering the Adder's 

 Tongue "not common." Many botanists, however, 

 believe the plant to be " overlooked rather than 

 rare." In an article on O. vulgatum, which ap- 

 peared some years ago in the Fern Bulletin, Mr. A. 

 A. Eaton writes : 



" Previous to 1895 Ophioglossum vulgatum was 

 unknown to me, and was considered very rare, only 

 two localities being known in Essex County, Mass. 

 Early in the year a friend gave me two specimens. 

 From these I got an idea of how the thing looked. 

 On the nth of last July, while collecting Habenaria 

 lacera in a ' bound-out ' mowing field, I was de- 

 lighted to notice a spike of fruit in the grass. A 

 search revealed about sixty, just right to collect, 

 with many unfruitful specimens. A few days later, 



77 



