Plants - Ferns, Palms and Cycads
()
About this ebook
Read more from William Watson
Propagation of Plants - With Chapters on Propagation by Seed, Bulbs, Runners, Cuttings and Other Methods Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPlants - The Greenhouse and the Tropical House Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Grow Melons - Three Articles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFruit Cultivation - Including: Figs, Pineapples, Bananas, Melons, Oranges and Lemons Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLife in the Confederate Army: Observations and Experiences of a Foreigner in the South During the American Civil War Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Poems of William Watson Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Plants - Ferns, Palms and Cycads
Related ebooks
Grasses, Sedges, Rushes And Ferns Of The British Isles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKingdom of Plants: A Journey Through Their Evolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ferns: Clubmosses, Quillworts and Horsetails of Britain and Ireland Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Collection of Articles on Indoor Cacti - A Guide to Growing and Care Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMosses and Liverworts of Rainforest in Tasmania and South-eastern Australia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCactus Growing for Beginners Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAustralian Planting Design Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Modern Flower Garden - 6. Lilies - With Chapters on Lily Species and Propagation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWetland Plants of Queensland: A Field Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsQuiver Trees, Phantom Orchids & Rock Splitters: The Remarkable Survival Strategies of Plants Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Plant Families - How To Know Them Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGarden Wildlife: Revealing Your Garden's Secrets Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFerns Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFerns Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Public Garden Management: a Global Perspective: Volume Ii Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWildflowers of the Brisbane Ranges Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe New Ornamental Garden Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAbundant Beauty: The Adventurous Travels of Marianne North, Botanical Artist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Alien Plants Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGreen Guide to Wild Flowers Of Britain And Europe Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBotanic Gardens Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Woodlands: A Disappearing Landscape Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe New Shade Garden: Creating a Lush Oasis in the Age of Climate Change Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The New Sylva: A Discourse of Forest and Orchard Trees for the Twenty-First Century Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hardy Ornamental Trees and Shrubs - With Chapters on Conifers, Sea-side Planting and Trees for Towns Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPlant Names: A Guide to Botanical Nomenclature Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Art Forms in Nature Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Story of the Garden Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPlant Combinations for an Abundant Garden: Design and Grow a Fabulous Flower and Vegetable Garden Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Wildlife-friendly Garden Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Nature For You
Floriography: An Illustrated Guide to the Victorian Language of Flowers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The God Delusion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fantastic Fungi: How Mushrooms Can Heal, Shift Consciousness, and Save the Planet Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Complete Language of Flowers: A Definitive and Illustrated History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arthur: The Dog who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary of Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Cryptozoology A To Z: The Encyclopedia Of Loch Monsters Sasquatch Chupacabras And Other Authentic M Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Lucky Dog Lessons: From Renowned Expert Dog Trainer and Host of Lucky Dog: Reunions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5SAS Survival Handbook, Third Edition: The Ultimate Guide to Surviving Anywhere Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hunt for the Skinwalker: Science Confronts the Unexplained at a Remote Ranch in Utah Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Coffee: A Sustainable Guide to Nootropics, Adaptogens, and Mushrooms Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Heartbeat of Trees: Embracing Our Ancient Bond with Forests and Nature Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Complete Kitchen Garden: An Inspired Collection of Garden Designs & 100 Seasonal Recipes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Edible Wild Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Everything Guide to Foraging: Identifying, Harvesting, and Cooking Nature's Wild Fruits and Vegetables Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHoneybee Democracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shelter: A Love Letter to Trees Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Foraging for Survival: Edible Wild Plants of North America Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Book of Fungi: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species from around the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Silent Spring Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Scout's Guide to Wild Edibles: Learn How To Forage, Prepare & Eat 40 Wild Foods Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Under the Henfluence: Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWorld of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Plants - Ferns, Palms and Cycads
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Plants - Ferns, Palms and Cycads - William Watson
Fig. 201.—View in Tropical Fern House, Kew
FERNS
From the point of view of decorative foliage plants, the great family of Ferns is one of the main contributors to the immense amount of material which we nowadays possess. In the extraordinary diversity of form, size, habit of growth, simplicity or complexity of make and even in some cases range of colour, no class of plants equals the Ferns, not only in their marvellous specific diversity, but still more in the further diversity which has been developed by the peculiar mutational capacity of many of their species. Of this capacity the selective cultivator has taken advantage to the great enhancement of their characters, by obtaining through their spores, offspring which vary both ways, some reverting more or less towards the ancestral form, while others present new characters. Hence in many cases the results of selective propagation are frequently so different from the normal, that no one ignorant of their pedigree would credit their origin.
It will be of interest to dwell a little upon the history of Ferns. They are the undoubted progenitors of all flowering plants, while they themselves have been evolved from primarily lower forms of spore-bearing vegetation, such as the seaweeds and algæ, which under persistent aqueous conditions of existence have survived in innumerable forms. There is no branch of palæological study which gives us so appalling an idea of the immensity of time involved in the evolution of life from the very beginning as that of the fossil plants. With the animal world we can trace a distinct progression from one geological age to another, and, when we compare the earliest forms of animal life we know of with those of to-day, we find an enormous difference, so great indeed that we are probably safe in asserting that no form of animal life at present existing could be for a moment mistaken for one existing at the time of the earliest known geological deposits in which any animal life is visible at all.
With Ferns the extraordinary fact is clearly demonstrated by myriads of examples, that, though they form the chief material of the coal measures, they were then apparently quite as far advanced in the evolutional scale as those of the present age, from which it needs a keen eye in many instances to detect a difference, and that, when detected, will be no greater than now exists between the species themselves. Beyond the Ferns and their allies of the coal forming period, when they must have constituted the great bulk of terrestrial vegetation, we cannot penetrate; but, judging by the imperceptible alteration evolved in the subsequent period, it is impossible to form an idea of the length of the previous period required to transform a seaweed from a water plant into a beautifully cut fern adapted for scattering its spores through the air on dry land. On the other hand, the link between Ferns and Seaweeds is maintained in the fact that complete submersion of the reproductive apparatus in water is absolutely essential.
Cycads show a sort of half-way transformation from Ferns to Flowering Plants in their frond-like foliage and certain peculiarities in their reproductive characters. Gingko biloba, the Maidenhair Tree, one of our rare Conifers, is, however, perhaps the most marked existing link remaining. Although a true Conifer or Pine tree, attaining a huge size, its leaves are constructed on exactly the lines of a Fern. Fertilization is effected by a travelling spermatozoid instead of the male germ being carried all the way by a pollen tube. The immense range of the coal fields which exist in many parts of the world represents what we may term primeval Fern forests of great area and of often immense duration. These were, however, subjected to changes of level