Bracken Fern Traditional Cache

Bracken Fern looks like a giant variation of the ferns I grew up with in Sweden.(Swedish:"Ormbunke"= Snakebowl.) I was surprised to find that it is indeed the same species. There's a plaque about them near the parking for the Visitor Center. Please go to the bottom of the page for information about the hidden cache.

Bracken Fern

Bracken (Pteridium) is a genus of large, coarse ferns in the family Dennstaedtiaseae. Ferns (Pteridophyta) are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells (eggs and sperm). Brackens are noted for their large, highly divided leaves. They are found on all continents except Antarctica and in all environments except deserts, though their typical habitat is moorland. The genus probably has the widest distribution of any fern in the world.

In the past, the genus was commonly treated as having only one species, Pteridium aquilinum, but the recent trend is to subdivide it into about ten species.

Like other ferns, brackens do not have seeds or fruits, but the immature fronds, known as fiddleheads, are sometimes eaten, although some are thought to be carcinogenic. (see Poisoning)

The word bracken is of Old Norse origin, related to Swedish bräken and Danish bregne, both meaning fern.

Evolutionarily, bracken may be considered one of the most successful ferns. Bracken, like heather, is typically found in moorland environments, and is commonly referred to by local populations in the north of England as 'Moorland Scrub'. It is also one of the oldest ferns, with fossil records over 55 million years old having been found. The plant sends up large, triangular fronds from a wide-creeping underground rootstock, and may form dense thickets. This rootstock may travel a meter or more underground between fronds. The fronds may grow up to 2.5 m (8.2 ft) long or longer with support, but typically are in the range of 0.6–2 m (2.0–6.6 ft) high. In cold environments, bracken is deciduous and, as it requires well-drained soil, is generally found growing on the sides of hills.

Sori on outer edge under the leaves

The spores are contained in structures found on the underside of the leaf called sori. The linear pattern of these is different from other ferns which are circular and towards the centre.

Pteridium aquilinum (bracken or common bracken) is the most common species with a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring in temperate and subtropical regions throughout much of the world.

Bracken is a well-adapted pioneer plant which can colonise land quickly, with the potential to extend its area by as much as 1–3% per year. This ability to expand rapidly is at the expense of other plants and wildlife, can cause major problems for land users and managers. It colonises ground with an open vegetation structure but is slow to colonise healthy, well managed heather stands

Bracken fiddleheads (the immature, tightly curled emerging fronds) have been considered edible by many cultures throughout history, and are still commonly used today as a foodstuff. Bracken fiddleheads are either consumed fresh (and cooked) or preserved by salting, pickling, or sun drying.

Bracken is called wiwnunmí útpas ‘huckleberry’s blanket’ by the Umatilla Indians of the Columbia River in the United States Northwest. The fronds were used to cover a basket full of huckleberries in order to keep them fresh.

Bracken has been shown to be carcinogenic in some animals and some have suggested it could have some part in causing the high incidence of stomach cancer in Japan.

It was traditionally used (and still is in certain areas like mid-Wales) for animal bedding, which later broke down to a rich mulch which could be used as fertilizer.

When used by gardeners as a winter mulch it has been shown to reduce the loss of potassium and nitrogen and to lower soil pH.

Other uses were as packing material for products such as earthenware, as a fuel, as a form of thatch. The ash was used for degreasing woolen cloth.

A quick and easy remedy for nettle stings is to rub bracken on the affected area. The juice it releases alleviates the sting, and bracken often grows near stinging nettle.

Poisoning

Young bracken fronds curled

The plant is carcinogenic to animals such as mice, rats, horses and cattle when ingested, although they will usually avoid it unless nothing else is available. Young stems are quite commonly used as a vegetable in China, Japan and Korea. However, some researchers suspect a link between consumption and higher stomach cancer rates. The spores have also been implicated as a carcinogen. Danish scientist Lars Holm Rasmussen released a study in 2004 showing that the carcinogenic compound in bracken, ptaquiloside or PTA, can leach from the plant into the water supply, which may explain an increase in the incidence of gastric and esophageal cancers in bracken-rich areas.

In cattle, bracken poisoning can occur in both an acute and chronic form, acute poisoning being the most common. In pigs and horses bracken poisoning induces vitamin B deficiency. Poisoning usually occurs when there is a shortage of available grasses such as in drought or snowfalls.

The cache is a tied in, camoed, big "micro" pill bottle, that you have to push hard to both open and close. It holds only a rolled log with a rubber band, kept dry in a tiny zip lock bag. Please BYOP and put everything back as you found it. The rubber band is good on your finger while you log, as long as you remember to put it back on the log when you've rolled it up again.