Denzil’s Nature Photo Challenge this week gives us a lot of information about Ferns
First of all ferns can be found alongside streams. Here are ferns from a stream at the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park

Ferns and Lichen seem to like to hang out together

Ferns are often used in traditional medicine. Here is Mother Earth adorned in ferns.

Do you have Ferns around your house? Yes and no. This looks like a fern but isn’t. Who can guess what it is?Answer below*

I veered from the subject at hand here but I had fun looking things up. I hope you enjoy the journey too. Denzil tells us ferns are a very old plant life and are often found as fossils. My mother was a fossil collector and I’m sure I might have a small fossil fern somewhere but I did find an dendritic agate that has branching fern like inclusions. It’s is said to have healing properties.

*Artichoke which is a thistle.
I love ferns. When we drive ‘up north’ in Michigan we know we’re up there when we start to see ferns in the woods along the roads. I have one big cinnamon fern in my front yard. Last year a fawn slept in it and crushed it, but it’s back bigger than ever this year.
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What a lovely story about the faun in the fern. Thanks Interesting how ferns indicate where you are. There are ferns under the redwoods around here.
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Thanks for submitting to my challenge Carol. I would have said a thistle, and would not have guessed an artichoke. Good mystery photo!
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Guessing thistle would be correct, artichoke is a very big thistle!
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Oh I didn’t realize! Clever me! 🙂
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