Autumn woodland fern nature guide

On a damp, muddy autumn walk through your local woodland, you stop to marvel at the fern at your feet, its tips turning the colour of embers. As the mist and drizzle settles in your hair, you turn over one of its feathered fronds shooting from the earth in the shape of a shuttlecock...

A mix of fact, folklore and with original illustrations by me, Agnes Becker, this digital download nature guide will enrich your encounter with woodland ferns, inspiring wonder for and connection with the natural world and our place in it.

Once you have purchased the guide, you'll be sent an email with a link to download it.

Please contact Agnes Becker at agnes@wearestardust.uk with any questions or for further information.

Format: PDF

Print version
Number of pages: 4
Print double sided in colour (pages 1-2) or in black and white (pages 3-4), fold into quarters and take on your walk

Mobile version
Number of pages: 10
Download and scroll through the pages as you walk

References

References are given in the order of the different sections within the guide.

At a glance

• Dryopteris Felix-mas. Royal Horticultural Society website. https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/114462/Dryopteris-filix-mas/Details
• Dryopteris cristata. Wisconsin: Consortium of Wisconsin Herberia website. http://wisflora.herbarium.wisc.edu/taxa/index.php?taxon=3441 - information on etymology of dryopteris.
• Male Fern. Wildlife Trusts website. https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/ferns-and-horsetails/male-fern
• Fern: Importance to humans. Encyclopeadia Britannica website. https://www.britannica.com/plant/fern/Importance-to-humans
• Dryopteris Felix-mas. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dryopteris_filix-mas
• Male Fern. Medicinal Herb Info website. http://medicinalherbinfo.org/000Herbs2016/1herbs/male-fern/ *

Identify ferns using the brilliant "What's that fern guide" from the British Pteridological Society: https://ebps.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Fern-Guide01.pdf

Magical

• Himmelein P., Ferns and Fairy Tales: Unfurling the Fiddlehead. Enchanted Living Magazine. Issue 30. (2015) https://enchantedlivingmagazine.com/ferns-and-fairy-tales/
• The Lifecycle of a Fern. British Pteridological Society website. https://ebps.org.uk/education/life-cycle-fern-small-arrows/
• Ferns-Pteridophyte Lifecycle. Hiraethum Youtube Channel. https://youtu.be/c4YtOT0Z6Ek 

Medicinal

• Waller, PJ et al. Plants as De-Worming Agents of Livestock in the Nordic Countries: Historical Perspective, Popular Beliefs and Prospects for the Future. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavicavolume 42, Article number: 31 (2001) https://actavetscand.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1751-0147-42-31
• A Modern Herbal, first published in 1931, by  M. Grieve, contains Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk-Lore of Herbs. https://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/mgmh.html ISBN: 0486227987 & 0486227995
• Medicinal action and uses from A Modern Herbal: https://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/f/ferns-08.html#malmed
• Napoli, M. The plants, rituals and spells that 'cured' helminthiasis in Sicily. J of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 4. Article numbe: 21 (2008) https://ethnobiomed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1746-4269-4-21
• Piperazine and Male Fern in Expulsion of Tapeworms Br Med J 1958; 1 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.1.5063.133 (Published 18 January 1958) Cite this as: Br Med J 1958;1:133 
• Group E., What is Male Fern Root? Global Healing Centre website (2015) https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/male-fern-root/ *
• Male Fern. Medicinal Herb Info website. http://medicinalherbinfo.org/000Herbs2016/1herbs/male-fern/ *
• Male Fern. Drugs.com (2019) https://www.drugs.com/npp/male-fern.html

* Not sure about the validity of the content on these websites but in the information on the Male Fern correlates with other sources.

Ancient

• Image from Benjamin Cummings. Copyright Pearson Education Inc. https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/512354895104001466/

Fern fever

• Nicolaidou D. How the Victorian Fern-Hunting Craze Led To Adventure, Romance, and Crime. Atlas Obscura website (2016) https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/how-the-victorian-fern-hunting-craze-led-to-adventure-romance-and-crime
• Fox E., Pteridomania: The Victorian Fern Craze... The Virtual Victorian website (2011) https://virtualvictorian.blogspot.com/2011/03/pteridomania-aka-victorian-fern-craze.html