Abstract
This paper dealt with the anatomical characters of two species belonging to series Pedata and four species belonging to series Flabellulata of genus Adiantum, which grow in China and neighbouring countries. The results were as follows:(I) These four Flabellulata species can be distinguished from one another by the distribution or shape of hairs, the distribution of stomata in pinnule, the shape of the cells of supporting sheath in the transection of root, etc. But the two Pedata species showed the same anatomical characters with each other.(II) Plants of the two series are distinguishable, that is, four Flabellulata species, all having hairs in the blade or petiole of pinnule, most veins terminating at the upper margin, a stele (or xylem) branching into two meristeles (or xylems), while Pedata species have one stele and xylem which do not branch but show U-shape in the transection of lower and basal parts of the stipe.(III) On the basis of above results, it was clarified that the crude drugs, Tie-si-cao, Jin-tou-wugong, Xiao-hao-yin-fen-bei-jue and Shi-bi-huang from Taiwan, Hei-gu-cao from Hongkong, Hei-jiao-jue from Guangxi and Zhu-zong-cao from Sichuan of China were all derived from A. flabellulatum, and Seki-cho-sei from Nagoya of Japan was derived from A. pedatum.
