Christmas fern

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Christmas fern

n.
An eastern North American evergreen fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) having pinnate leaves and dense clusters of lance-shaped fronds.
[So called because the fronds remain green in winter and were formerly much used as Christmas decorations.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.Christmas fern - North American evergreen fern having pinnate leaves and dense clusters of lance-shaped frondsChristmas fern - North American evergreen fern having pinnate leaves and dense clusters of lance-shaped fronds
canker brake, dagger fern, evergreen wood fern, Polystichum acrostichoides
fern - any of numerous flowerless and seedless vascular plants having true roots from a rhizome and fronds that uncurl upward; reproduce by spores
genus Polystichum, Polystichum - small to medium-sized terrestrial ferns especially holly ferns; in some classification systems placed in Polypodiaceae
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References in periodicals archive
Cultivars to include are Holly Fern, "Autumn Fern" and "Lady in Red" for color and adaptability, but do not overlook our native ferns, such as Christmas fern, Lady Fern, and Maidenhair Fern.
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Furled Fern: Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichhoides); Houston County, Tenn.
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Christmas Fern: Tribal healers rubbed the juice of this common fern on the skin for rheumatism.
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