Ferns
Ferns have been around for at least 350 million years. For a time they were a major part of the plant kingdom, but flowering plants eventually relegated ferns to a somewhat secondary status. Even so, there are more than 10,000 species of ferns and fern-related plants in the world, and of those about 400 occur in the United States.
 
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David Lellinger.A Field Manual of the Ferns and Fern-Allies of the United States & Canada This is the best single guide to the ferns of North America that I know of. The book opens with about forty pages devoted to the ecology, classification, and study of ferns. Species accounts fill most of the remainder of the book. The species accounts focus on the physical characteristics of the plants, and can be rather technical. However, the author also provides information on the geographic distribution of the various species and discusses their prospects for cultivation. Several hundred small but generally excellent color photos occupy the middle pages of the book. Highly recommended. |
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Gil Nelson. The Ferns of Florida Florida's climate makes it one of the best places in the United States to find ferns; indeed, the list of ferns in the United States would be substantially shorter if Florida were an independent country. Each species gets a separate account that discusses its physical characteristics, geographic range, and suitable habitats; each also includes a small distribution map. Most of the species accounts also include a short catch-all section of interesting information - taxonomic history, how it got to Florida, cultivation tips, etc. More than two hundred color images fill the plates in the middle of the volume. First rate. |
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Boughton Cobb. Ferns This is Volume 10 in the Peterson Field Guides series. Despite the all-inclusive title on the front cover, this book only covers the northeastern quadrant of the United States. Users in the south or west will need another guide. Still, this book has some very nice characteristics. There are sixty pages of introductory material about ferns, and most of the species enjoy a full two page treatment - a page of descriptive text, and a facing page with one or more excellent drawings. Recommended, if you live in this area of the country. |
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Lin Dunbar. Ferns of the Coastal Plain: Their Lore, Legend and Uses I've written about this book elsewhere; see the link for a longer review. The short version is that despite its limited geographical scope - the coastal plains of Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas - this book's focus on the ethnobotany of the species it covers makes it of considerable interest. I wish similar volumes were available for other regions. |
