Ebony Spleenwort

May 12, 2025

Ebony Spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron), native to eastern North America, as well as southern Africa. It is a small evergreen fern that grows to between 6 and 10 inches tall.

A fern that I have the pleasure of seeing occasionally as I hike the trails up here in these beautiful mountains. It not only grows in a wide variety of soil types, but it also can grow on nearly bare rocks.

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Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.

2 thoughts on “Ebony Spleenwort”

    1. Hi Grace! This fern has the name Ebony Spleenwort because the stipe, or stem of the fern frond, resembles the color of the wood, ebony.

      So very glad you read my posts!
      Bren

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