CHAPTER XXVI 



FERNS AND THEIR ALLIES 



260. The Group. — The ferns are the best known mem- 

 bers of this group, but club-mosses and rushes (horsetail | 

 also belong to the fern 



family. The study of 

 coal mines has shown us 

 that ferns are very old 

 plants and that they 

 were formerly much 

 more numerous than at 

 the present time. The 

 plants of this group 

 have real stems, roots, 

 and leaves, and most of 

 them are larger than the 

 mosses. While the ferns 

 are not so dependent 

 upon water as the mosses, 

 they grow best in cool, 

 moist woods and in rich 

 soil. 



261. A Typical Fern. — 

 The fern named pteris 

 (Figure 394) is the best 

 known and most widely 



distributed. The stem proper is underground and lives 

 on from year to year, while the part above earth renews 



869 



Figure 394. Pteris. 



