Copy permalink to share
Lygodiaceae
Lygodium

not marked as a favorite taxon Lygodium Swartz. Common name: Climbing Fern.

Key to Lygodium

A genus of about 40 species, mostly tropical, with a few temperate species.

Glossary (beta!)

ID notes: Lygodium in our region consists of two non-native and invasive species and an uncommon native. All species have underground rhizomes and very long leaves with wiry petioles and rachises that can climb into shrubs and trees or sprawl over the ground and lower vegetation. These "leaves with pinnae" are often mistaken for "stems with leaves" because of their surprising length and the distancing between the pinnae.

References: Nauman (1993b) In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (1993b); Yawn et al. (2024); Zhang & Hanks in FoC (2013). Show full citations.

Show in key(s)

Show parent family | Show parent in key(s)

Show species in Lygodium

Your browser does not support SVGs

Hover over a shape, letter, icon, or arrow on the map for definition or see the legend. Data for arrows not developed for genera and families which may have species only occurring outside the flora area.

image #1 of Lygodium© Keith Bradley | Lygodium japonicum | Original Image ⭷
image #2 of Lygodium© Keith Bradley | Lygodium palmatum | Original Image ⭷
image #3 of Lygodium© Keith Bradley | Lygodium microphyllum | Original Image ⭷
image #4 of Lygodium© Alan Cressler: Lygodium microphyllum, Highway 66, Hardee County, Florida 3 by Alan Cressler | Lygodium microphyllum source | Original Image ⭷

Feedback

See something missing or incorrect about Lygodium? Let us know here:
  1. Please include your name and if possible, email in case when need to clarify what you wrote.
  2. If you opt out of including email, please be as specific as possible (e.g., which photo is incorrect?)
  3. Please do not submit questions asking to identify plants or about horticultural topics (e.g., how do I control an invasive plant in my garden?). Instead, those questions can be submitted here for the Carolinas region only.
  4. Please do not send us feedback about unkeyed species as this work is ongoing.
  5. Please allow time for flora edits to show in our next data release. We greatly appreciate your feedback but may require extra time to research complicated taxonomic issues.