Benishida - Benishida

An evergreen fern of the Dryopteris family. The leaves are 60-90 cm long and grow in bunches from a thick rhizome that rises obliquely. The leaf blade is ovate, pinnately divided twice, leathery, and shiny on the surface. Young leaves are reddish purple, and the integument is crimson, hence the name. The leaf axis is densely covered with thin black scales. The sporangia are located between the leaf margin and the midrib, and the integument is reniform. It is commonly found under mountain forests from the Kanto region onwards. D. nipponensis, which has a similar morphology and ecology to D. nipponensis, has larger, more deeply incised, and less shiny leaves than D. nipponensis. D. fuscipes, which is more commonly found in the south, has sporangia located closer to the midrib and the tips of the pinnae are rounded. Both species are often planted in the ground in Japanese gardens.

[Harufumi Nishida]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

オシダ科の常緑性シダ。葉は長さ60～90センチメートルで、斜上するやや太い根茎から束生する。葉身は卵形で2回羽状に分裂し、革質で表面につやがある。若い葉は赤紫色で、とくに包膜は真紅であることからこの名がある。葉軸には細い黒色の鱗片(りんぺん)が密生する。胞子嚢(のう)群は葉縁と中肋(ちゅうろく)の間につき、包膜は円腎(えんじん)形。関東地方以西の山地林下に普通にみかける。ベニシダと形態、生態が似ているトウゴクシダD. nipponensisは、葉がベニシダより深く切れ込み、大形でつやも少ない。また、分布がやや南に多いマルバベニシダD. fuscipesは、胞子嚢群が中肋寄りにつき、小羽片の先が丸みを帯びる。いずれも、日本庭園などに地植えでよく栽植される。

［西田治文］

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