Common name: Sword fern
Botanical name: Nephrolepis cordifolia
The rhizomes of N. cordifolia are suberect with linear scales that are orange-brown to pale-brown. These scales have wiry, hairlike tips. There are many stolons present that produce tubers. The fronds of N. cordifolia are 1m long and 7cm wide. The petioles are 20cm long and have pale-brown scales. The leaflets are oblong and on the upper side of the blade there is an auricle that may overlap the rachis. These leaflets are usually entirely toothed. They are 4.8cm long and 0.9cm wide (Langeland, 2001). The main stalk of the frond, or rachis, may contain 40 to 100 leaflets or pinna.
