Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn, bracken, fougère-aigle
Perennial, with extensive creeping and forking underground
rhizomes; fronds 3 to 15 feet (9 to 45 dm.) high; throughout,
except the mid-west; abandoned fields, open woods, swamps, bogs,
burnt-over areas, grassy slopes, roadsides, and waste places;
native to North America. Although sometimes eaten by humans,
recent evidence indicates that it is carcinogenic. Sickness and
death has occurred in livestock after eating this plant.
