My Fascination With Ferns.
This is my first blog for the SAM challenge organized by my friend @bluemoon I hope to be able to add some snippets about myself in weeks to come with photos to make it more interesting for the reader.
Ever since I was a little girl, growing up in New Zealand, I’ve had a fascination with ferns. New Zealand is a country blessed with a wonderful variety of ferns and of course the most famous one and the one I identify with most, is our Silver Fern. And this one is called Cyathea dealbata, more commonly known as the Silver Fern or ponga (pronounced Punga) fern which is endemic to New Zealand.
It is characterized by the silver-white colour of its under-surface when the fronds are mature and it is the iconic symbol associated with the country and by New Zealanders themselves.
As a child, I probably spent equal times at the beach and in the bush as I used to love exploring. Still do actually. I never had to worry about venomous snakes or poisonous spiders in New Zealand because there aren’t any snakes and only a couple of spiders which cause uncomfortable bites but are not known as life threatening. So my childhood explorations were free of these concerns. I did have to be careful when scaling down steep inclines in the dense bush because the ground was often damp due to heavy rainfall and not enough sun to dry out the ground in the winter.
What I love most about ferns is there elegant beauty and yet they are very tough as far as what they can withstand with weather conditions and environment. The various shades of lush green that most ferns feature has a calming effect on me and they are plentiful in the deepest parts of the bush protected by canopies of leaves from large trees.
I love being surrounded by untouched nature and the feel of the earth beneath my feet and because ferns have been around for 350 million years they give me a sense of reliability and survival which somehow ‘grounds’ me.
Ferns belong to a division of the plant family called Pteridophyta and there are about 10,000 species throughout the world. Australia (where I live now) has about 420 different species of ferns and they vary in both form and shape.
Their other point of difference between flowers and ferns is that ferns are reproduced by spore found on the back of leaves whereas flowers are reproduced via seeds. The tiny brown or yellow dots we see on the leaves are receptacles which contain thousands of spore.
The most familiar ferns include the Boston fern, the dainty maidenhair fern, and the remarkable elk and stag horns which are common in the rainforest areas of Australia Tree ferns such as the Dicksonia antarctica are characterized by their long fronds and are called the soft tree fern because of the soft, furry material that's at the bottom of each of the fern fronds. This type of fern are very slow growing, but once mature they are quite magnificent.
Amongst the more unusual fern varieties are the Asplenium Nidus ‘Osaka’ which is a Bird’s Nest Fern and these have wavy edges on their leaves. This variety also grows well in a pot and they make a superb display. The other type of bird's nest fern, is the Asplenium Australasicum 'Multilobum' and this one is characterized by their crested and divided leaves.
A popular fern used in hanging baskets is the coarse, Queensland Tassel fern Huperzia Phlegmaria and this is one of the oldest living forms of ferns. Most ferns are perennials and they sometimes grow from an underground rhizome. One of these is the hare's foot type fern called Polypodium vulgare and this is another one which looks great in a hanging basket.
Not all ferns are green. The Pteris ‘Algeria,’ has an unusual stripe of silver down its frond. And the autumn fern has triangular shaped leaves which turn a coppery colour in autumn and the Pteris umbrosa has creamy coloured leaves.
Generally speaking, ferns prefer part shade, under the canopy of trees. But there is one called the 'Little Aussie Larrikin' which defies the rules because it grows in full sun, with the help of a little summer watering during summer. This one is called a Cyathea brownii, and it is a dwarf variety which originates from Norfolk Island.
The biggest problem people have with growing ferns is that they either let them dry out too much or they over water them. They certainly do not need to be watered every day but they benefit from mulching.
The beautiful maiden hair fern can suffer from neglect because people forget to water them. If they are kept indoors they need to be free from draughty areas and away from heated spots.
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I love their curly little tendrils as they're unfolding :) They're surprisingly tough little things (or big things in some cases) given their appearance XD
So true @ryivhnn I'd love to watch one unfurl in slow motion.......just another example of the wonders of nature. Thanks very much for dropping by. I hope you have en enjoyable week.
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I love ferns too! Great write on them.
I have some tattooed on me :)
Hi @weirdomagnet You must be a fan of ferns if you have one tattooed on you. Thanks so much for your visit.
The ferns down there are pretty varied. They also look a lot... fleshier? than the ones we have here. There is a type of fern in Michigan, where my parents are from, with leaves that are almost like wispy hairs. They seem to have done well, ferns.
As long as they have plenty of protection from the harsh sun and enough moisture the ferns do very well in this part of the world.
Nice to meet you @trudeehunter. My Mom always had a fern in our house. I have not had success with them myself. Love all your information. I have seen some that grow in my wooded area.
Love
Hello julieabbi2 Lovely to meet you too. Many thanks for dropping by. I am glad you enjoyed this blog. Have a great week.
Ferns always remind me of cool calm places
Me too @ligayagardener and that is one of the reasons I love ferns. Thanks a lot for your visit and for you kind resteems. Much appreciated.
Lovely indeed! I like the softness of the Green. very beautiful leaves . Nice to put the image to the descriptions, especially catch stunning images.
Great lighting and composition. Nice shot! Love your photography style.
Many thanks for your welcome visit and lovely comments @ykdesign I'm glad you enjoyed this post.
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Thank you very much for participating in our challenge. Please forgive me for the comment so late, I was gone from home.
I can imagine how beautiful your childhood was in New Zealand. A place of extraordinary nature, as I read or seen in documentary films. Ferns are spectacular and I'm glad you showed us more species. In Romania I know only one species that grows in forests.
Photos are great, I like the shadows of ferns on rocks and water.
Thanks so much for your lovely comments @bluemoon and your support. No apolgies are necessary as I know what is like at times here in stemit. I enjoyed my first SAM post and will look forward to further partcipation when I can accompany the facts with photos.
It was a wonderful post and I look forward to seeing a new post. Thank you!