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New Zealand Ferns 
(52) A. affine (related). A lowland fern, fond of 
dry shady slopes; the most abundant maidenhair in New 
Zealand, with large-leaved straggling fronds. 
Description . — Root long, creeping, stout, clothed with glossy 
dark chestnut-brown scales. Stalks 4 to 12 inches long, stout, 
erect, shining-black, rough and scaly at the very base, smooth 
and polished above. Fronds 6 to 15 inches long by 3 to 9 inches 
broad, green to pale-green above, usually sea-green below, quite 
smooth. Seeds numerous, rather large, placed in small notches 
on the upper and outer margins of the leaflets. 
Abundant throughout the Dominion. 
A very variable species in size, the amount of branch- 
ing of the frond, and the shape of the leaflets. When 
growing on rock faces it is often dwarfed to an inch or 
two. It is easily cultivated. Found also in Australia. 
