Asleep
by Connie Handscomb
Title
Asleep
Artist
Connie Handscomb
Medium
Photograph - Photography - Fine Art
Description
All action begins in rest.
~ Lao Tzu
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The scientific name in the broad family kingdom of True Ferns is "Polypodiophyta" - its phylum synonym is "Filicinophyta" or "Pteridophyta": plants which have a vascular system, and which produce spores, rather than seeds or flowers. Commonly, we know them as ferns and its relations (clubmosses and horsetails). They number about 9,000 species. [Recent modern classifications have changed the naming of the fern kingdom].
Back, back, back - over 300 million years ago, before the dinosaurs - ferns existed, making them amongst the oldest plants in the world. Their remains turned to compost, the compost to peat, the peat to coal; while in earlier times, Romans used this to heat their baths, later it fostered the Industrial Revolution.
But they have more than industrial uses. Indigenous people worldwide used them for a variety of ailments and conditions. In North America, the stems, leaves, and roots of various ferns -- Evergreen, Maidenhair, Bracken, Rock Cap, many others - for a variety of ailments and conditions. Concoctions and decoctions were made for sores, infections, ulcers, pleurisy, hives, toothaches, cholera, stomach ailments, pneumonia, blood ailments, heart problems, bronchitis, sore throats, intestinal worms (oleoresin in fern rhizome paralyzes intestinal worms) and parasites; tuberculosis [rock cap, rattlesnake, and bracken ferns]; teas for headaches; poultices for rheumatism; gynecological problems, hair washes to keep hair shiny; antihistamine [licorice fern].
As a food, the curled, new shoots (the fiddleheads) of the Ostrich Fern - available only in the springtime - are edible although they must never be eaten raw or undercooked, or food poisoning can occur. They are cleansing, high in antioxidents, an appetite suppressant, and have a role in preventing some kinds of cancer. The Sweet Fern has a licorice flavor in its root, used as an 'exotic' flavor in fine restaurants.
Note 1 : Caution - the substance in stems can disturb thiamine metabolism, and has three known carcinogens. Know what you are doing if you are going to ingest ferns.
Note 2: Some plants are called ferns - such as the asperagus fern - but they are not really ferns. Air ferns, for expample, are actually animals related to corals and jellyfish.
Sources:
Complete Book of Health Plants- Atlas of Medicinal Plants [Francesco Bianchini & Corbetta]
Medicinal Plant and Herbs of Eastern and Central North America [Peterson Field Guide]
Fifty Plants That Changed The Course Of History [Bill Laws]
Nathaniel Whitmore , Herbalist [website]
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This fern is still asleep, soon to awaken in the spring sunshine. Captured in natural light, uncropped, unedited ... nature in all its spendour :)
Uploaded
April 22nd, 2016
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