what's almost like a cinnamon fern?

[Jim Shaffer]

I bought three semi-dormant cinnamon ferns on eBay a while ago, and now that they're well-unfolded one of them seems to be something else. It looks almost like a cinnamon fern except the individual leaflets (if that's the correct term) are smoother and some of the fronds have spore-forming bodies on them. I've heard the ostrich fern compared to the cinnamon fern, but from the pictures I've seen of the ostrich fern the leaflets don't look smooth enough to be what I've got. What other possibilities are there? Could this just be a freak cinnamon fern?

[Kay Lancaster]

Osmunda cinnamomea, cinnamon fern, has separate fertile and sterile fronds. The two don't look at all alike. What I think you're describing is sori (clusters of sporangia) dotted on the underside of the frond?

At any rate, cinnamon fern should look like this:

that even close to what you have? Can you post a photo to a web page and give us the URL?

[Jim Shaffer]

I know what cinnamon ferns look like, I already had one and wanted more. I'll try to post a picture of the oddball later, it's rainy today.

[Jim Shaffer]

Pictures are now at

the thumbnails, full-resolution images are still available)

[maxsilverstar]

Osmunda regalis?

[Jim Shaffer]

I think that's it, thanks! I think I'll remove it from the cinnamon fern planting and give it a space by itself.