Uses. Pleopeltis polypodioides (Resurrection Fern) is a species of perennial herb in the family Polypodiaceae. Some additional uses, such as Cinnamon Ferns use for snakebite and Maidenhairs use for heart trouble, go unmentioned in order to keep this list simple, easy to read, and memorable. The ancient Aztecs used them as a diuretic, against renal stones, cystitis and liver infections. Resurrection plants range from 15 to 30 centimetres (6 to 12 inches) in height and have a diameter up to 20 to 25 cm (8 to 10 inches) when open. It produces rhizomes, or stems that help it spread, but like all ferns it reproduces via spores. The fronds are 4 to 6 inches long, leathery, light green above, beneath densely covered with rusty, toothed scales, the sori hidden under the scales. Both fertile and sterile fronds have the same shape (monomorphic). The ashes as soon as cool should be collected and kept dry until required for use. Other common names (based on its former classification) include little gray polypody and scaly polypody. This tiny little fern can do what few plants canlook dead one day and totally alive the next. As you might expect, the ability of resurrection fern to withstand extreme drought has caught the attention of scientists for a variety of reasons, including medical and botanical. The distilled water of the roots and leaves was considered by the old herbalists good for ague, and the fresh or dried roots, mixed with honey and applied to the nose, were used in the cure of polypus. It should never be more than a year old. Only old rhizomes should be taken. It was also used as a pectoral and as an aperient in obstructions of the viscera, and an infusion of the leaves was prescribed for gravel. The medicinal uses are as in Male Fern, but it is less powerful in action. You have the right to view these pages and where applicable, to copy these pages and any images to a cache for reference by yourself only at a later date. Photo 2: In this early January photo, resurrection fern (growing among moss) was damaged when tree limb was cut for firewood, thus exposing rhizomes. Sensitive Fern used for intestinal troubles. A. trapeziforme of Mexico is more aromatic but less valuable medicinally. Resurrection Ferns are not parasitic. The rootstock is similar to Male Fern, but there are differences in the number of wood bundles in the stems, also in the hairs on the margins of the leaf-stalk scales. Excellent Source of Phosphorus. The potash yield of Bracken ash is so considerable that in view of the present scarcity of fertilizers, this source of supply is well worth attention. Resurection fern is a member of Polypodiaceae, a family of mostly epiphytic ferns. Cinnamon Fern (Osmunda cinnamomea) used externally for rheumatism and internally for joint pain. Although resurrection ferns grow on top of other plants, they do not steal nutrients or water from their host plant. Ed. These little plants have been used medically for thousands of years. ---Description---The rootstock is tuberous, large and lobed, densely clothed with matted fibres, often forming a trunk rising perceptibly from the ground, sometimes to the height of a foot or more. ---Description---It has a creeping rhizome, which runs along the surface of the ground, or substance on which it grows, and is thick and woody, covered with yellowish scales. Papa!! For medicinal purposes it should be from 3 to 6 inches or more long and from 1 1/2 to 2 inches or more broad. The Resurrection Plant, Selaginella lepidophylla, is a botanical wonder known for its ability to seemingly come back to life again and again -- even after completely drying out. ---Parts Used Medicinally---An oil is extracted from the rhizome of this Fern, which, as far back as the times of Theophrastus and Dioscorides, was known as a valuable vermifuge, and its use has in modern times been widely revived. The lower surfaces of the lobes are covered with small (1/16 inch), flat, overlapping scales, attached at their reddish brown centers (peltate) and surrounded by broad, transparent to light gray, more or less entire margins. Lady Fern (Athyrium filis-femina) used for mothers with intestinal fevers and to prevent water breaking. Furthermore, its pinnatifid leaves have sinuses that are concave, rather than acute. It can also grow on other surfaces where it can get a grip with its rhizomes (root system). ---Medicinal Action and Uses---Has been used from ancient times medicinally, being mentioned by Dioscorides. The actual curative virtues of this Fern have been said to be due to the salts of lime, potash and other earths which it derives in solution from the bog soil and from the water in which it grows. It is usual to administer this worm medicine last thing at night, after several hours of fasting, and to give a purgative, such as castor oil, first thing in the morning. The Moonwort is said to possess similar vulnerary virtues to Adder's Tongue. Due to its ability to withstand drought, it can be found in a variety of habitats, but it needs a host plant or other substrate on which to anchor itself. Lobes, 1/8 inch wide, are oblong to elliptic with wide bases, entire or with slightly wavy margins, and are generally slightly wider at the middle, tapering gently toward the tip. One study found a strong relationship between the Resurrection Fern and Mosses. The small brown 'dots' on the underside of the leaves are sori, the spore sacs the fern uses for propagation. From between these remains of the leaf stalks, the black, wiry, branched roots may be seen. It is efficacious in jaundice, dropsy and scurvy, and combined with mallows removes hardness of the spleen, stitches in the side and colic. There are multiple species of ferns and all have many different medicinal uses. Ferns may be raised from the spores if carefully potted and looked after. (Wood p.125, 126) Harvesting Sweet Fern The rhizome varies in length and thickness according to its age. The leaf base - as already stated - has only two large bundles, and the stalks are less scaly than in the Male Fern. They are often found in association with mosses. Each frond is wide and spreading, stiff, erect, broadly lanceolate or lance-shaped, the stalk covered with brown scaly hairs. So what accounts for resurrection fern's Lazuras-like act? The resurrection plant species, termed desiccation-tolerant plants have evolved remarkable ability to withstand extreme dehydration and rapid rehydration of vegetative tissue without damage. Resurrection ferns can lose as much as 97 percent of their water content and remain alive. Apply this dosage once a week from mid-spring through summer for the best results. Slightly resinous taste. Christmas Fern used for stomachache, bowel problems, toothache, cramps, and diarrhea. bad breath. They do not acquire their food from the host plants upon which they grow. The Lenni Lenapes and Iroquoians are natives to the Delaware River valley region. Marsh Fern (Thelypteris palustris)used as a gynecological medicine. This handsome Fern is easy of cultivation and hardy, and is best transplanted when large. The genus name is from Greek words meaning many and shields (see peltate scale below). One of its old English names is Osmund the Waterman, and the white centres of its roots have been called the 'Heart of Osmund.'. Felixfoemina has no glandular hairs, and has only two large bundles in the base of the leafstalk in distinction to the eight of Filix-mas. Bacterial activity on the . Before the structure of Ferns was understood, their reproduction was thought to be due to unknown agencies - whence various superstitions arose. The resurrection fern is an air plant, or epiphyte, which attaches itself to other plants. Pliny considered that it caused barrenness. He died so that you could experience spiritual and eternal life. Again, it's using the substrate only as something to hold onto. They develop without the protective cover (indusium) that is typical of many genera of ferns. Unlike Common Polypody, this latter fern has scaly leaf undersides. A fun garden project to do with kids is to find a dry resurrection fern and mist it with water every hour for a few hours to see how long it takes before the fern turns green again. Many Northwest Native American tribes used the rhizomes of this fern for treating colds and sore throats and to sweeten foods. Instructions for dealing with Bracken are given by the Board of Agriculture for Scotland in Leaflets 18, 25, 39 and 42. This tiny little fern can do what few plants canlook dead one day and totally alive the next. In Cuba, it's been used to treat liver ailments. For pharmaceutical use, it is reduced to a coarse powder and at once exhausted with ether. The pinnae are alternate, slanting upwards; the pinnules thick, leathery, shiny, irregularly wedge-shaped. ---Description---The rootstock is tufted and creeping. (Although resurrection fern is usually found growing on living trees, it is an epiphyte, not a parasite nor, like mistletoe, a hemiparasite. The lower, rounded surface of the stipes also has dense, transparent, lanceolate scales and reddish brown hairs. Home; Advice; Flowers; There are over 1,200 varieties of Resurrection plants found all over the world. With fertilization of the egg, a diploid zygote can develop into a new diploid sporophyte plantand start the cycle over again. Resurrection Fern. By contrast, many plants will be pronounced dead if they lose as little as 10 percent of their water content. Video from UF/IFAS Lee County showing the transformation of resurrection fern, Florida Master Gardener Volunteer Program, UF/IFAS Extension: Solutions for Your Life, Institute of Food & Agricultural Sciences (IFAS), College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). Internally in the fresh state, the rhizome is fleshy and of a light yellowish-green colour. The Lady Fern is very variable in form, tint and flexibility: it is more graceful and somewhat more delicate than the Male Fern, and is early cut down by autumn frosts. It has very little odour, but a sweetish, astringent and subsequently nauseous and bitter taste. It seems like they may share the same space and probably help each other grasp the surfaces of the trees they grow on by providing a lattice work of rhizomes for the mosses to anchor themselves. In the case of Jesus Christ, however, He really died and then rose again to life. The United States Pharmacopoeia includes the rhizome of a Canadian species, A. marginale, which in transverse section shows only six wood bundles. Colors. In the powdered form, the dose varies from 60 to 180 grains, taken in honey or syrup, or infused in half a teacupful of boiling water. Daarrhea, headache, fevers, catarrh, vomiting of blood, rheumatism, toothaches, sprains, minor hemorrhages, dysentery and ringworm. The resurrection fern is a type of epiphytic fern, which means it grows on top of other plants or structures and reproduces by spores, not seeds. Required fields are marked *. Indications for use he states are; black rings under the eyes and sunken eyes. When removed from the ground, it is cylindrical and covered with the closelyarranged, overlapping remains of the leafstalks of the decayed fronds. The True Oak Fern is a much more delicate Fern and grows chiefly in mountainous districts, among the mossy roots of old oak-trees and sometimes in marshy places. This is the Resurrection Fern in times of drought or the dry seasons of the year. Photo in mid-October. This makes for a very beautiful combination of plants growing in the forest. It seems that they share the water that the mosses hold like a sponge. A. radiatum and A. fragile of Jamaica and A. thiopicum of Ethiopia are both used in medicine. Petioles (stipes), about a third the length of the frond, are round in cross section with a flattened top. ---Constituents---Tannin and mucilage. They should not be set too deep and are best kept rather moist. By believing in the person and work of Jesus Christ and trusting Him for your future, you also can have a resurrection experience. The ashes of both have been used in soap and glassmaking, and the young curled fronds have been boiled and eaten like Asparagus. Here in East Texas, it is very common to see Spanish moss growing in the same tree. Although resurrection fern grows on top of other plants, it does not steal nutrients or water from its host plant. Moss growing in the family Polypodiaceae when removed from the ground, it is cylindrical and covered with brown hairs. All ferns it reproduces via spores Board of Agriculture for Scotland in Leaflets,... To 2 inches or more broad internally in the forest food from ground... Cross section with a flattened top brown hairs as much as 97 percent of their water content not set... A flattened resurrection fern medicinal uses to sweeten foods to its age, lanceolate scales and reddish hairs! 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