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THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS 
OF FERNS. 
The Vegetable Kingdom is divided into two great 
groups of plants—those with flowers and those with¬ 
out — technically, Phanerogamia and Cryptogamia . 
The ferns belong to the latter group. They are 
easily distinguished from the mosses, horsetails, fungi, 
lichens, and algae, with which they are associated, by 
their large size and leafy character. The part of the 
fern which, from its green colour and general form, 
resembles a leaf, is called a frond. Although ferns 
have no proper flowers, they have organs which per¬ 
form the functions of flowers in higher plants. These 
organs are seldom seated on a separate stem or stalk, 
but are placed on the edges and under side of the 
fronds. 
Ferns, like other plants, have roots and stems. 
The roots of ferns are composed of small fibres, which 
are sent down from the stem, and they perform the 
same functions in ferns as in other plants. They serve 
to keep the plant in the soil in which it grows, and 
are also endowed with the property of absorbing from 
