2 definitions
for flowering fern
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :
Flowering \Flow"er*ing\, a. (Bot.)
Having conspicuous flowers; -- used as an epithet with many
names of plants; as, flowering ash; flowering dogwood;
flowering almond, etc.
[1913 Webster]
Flowering fern, a genus of showy ferns ({Osmunda), with
conspicuous bivalvular sporangia. They usually grow in wet
places.
Flowering plants, plants which have stamens and pistils,
and produce true seeds; phenogamous plants; --
distinguished from flowerless plants.
Flowering rush, a European rushlike plant ({Butomus
umbellatus), with an umbel of rosy blossoms.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 2.0 :
flowering fern
n 1: Australasian fern with clusters of sporangia on stems of
fertile fronds [syn: Helminthostachys zeylanica]
2: any fern of the genus Osmunda: large ferns with creeping
rhizomes; naked sporangia are on modified fronds that
resemble flower clusters [syn: osmund]
