THE BRITISH PTERIDOLOGICAL SOCIETY
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Officers and Committee from March 2000

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-mail: President@eBPS.org.uk
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Editors of the Fern Gazette: Miss J.M. Camus & J.A. Crabbe, Department of Botany,
The Natural History Museum, pratoen! ee Road, London SW7 5BD

ail: FernGazette @eBPS.org.uk

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ax: 0170 611264; E-mail: Pteridologist @eBPS.org.uk

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Committee: R.G. Ackers, L. Kirkham, Dr S. Martinelli,
.N. Timm, Prof. A.C. Wardlaw, B. Wright

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y
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The BRITISH PTERIDOLOGICAL SOCIETY was founded in 1891 and today continues as a focus for
fern enthusiasts. It slg a wd range of —— about ferns through the medium of its Si
and other litera It also organises formal talks, informal discussions, field meetings, garden visits, ts
ier ta a a chaage 2 pereide and fern ey _ The Society has a wide membership w
ludes gardeners, nu and botanists, both amateur and professional. The Societ

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riled ened) Pteridologist and Bulletin, are published ste The Fern Gazette — matter chie ;
air aaa anserrat on a pteridology, the Preridologist, topics of more gene | appeal, an
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MISSOURI BOTAN”

THE FEB 01 791
BULLETIN GARDEN LIBRARY
OF THE

BRITISH PTERIDOLOGICAL SOCIETY

Vol. 5 2000 No. 5

NATIONAL FIELD MEETINGS 2000

NEW ZEALAND - 11-26 February
Introduction [Alastair Wardlaw]

This excursion, held in New Zealand during summertime in the Southern Hemisphere, was
a good opportunity to be away from Britain in February! At a distance of 11,500 miles from
the UK, this magical antipodean country is about as far as one can get from what is home
for most BPS members.

The excursion took place through the initiative and under the leadership of Jennifer Ide. It
was she isied not only had the idea for an excursion to New Zealand (as others had also
had), but who found the time and energy to turn the idea into a reality. Jennifer also
shouldered ihe detailed planning of numbers, logistics and costs during the two years of
preparation beforehand. On the trip itself she was always to hand with the daily programme
magically photocopied, cheerfully answering questions and giving advice. In the event,
everything passed off smoothly and without untoward occurrences, except for one medical
emergency early on, which was dealt with calmly and efficiently. The excursion was
multinational, with representatives from Australia, Belgium, France and USA in addition to
a majority of British members — a total of 24 participants.

photo: J.M. Ide

Cyathea medullaris, Arthur’s Pass Road, New Zealand.

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The excursion provided a very full fortnight of fern hunting and getting to know well over
half of the c.200 species of New Zealand pteridophytes. In this we were greatly helped by
Jennifer having organised the services of local fern experts to act as guides at the numerous
sites we visited. Beforehand, the experts also provided checklists of what to expect at the
different places, so we could do some homework ahead of the site visits. Best of all, they
took us to favoured locations for ferns and could tell us on the spot which of the 17 species
of Blechnum or 22 species of Hymenophyllum we were looking at. For more leisurely
identifications, many of us had the excellent book by Brownsey & Smith-Dodsworth
(1989): New Zealand Ferns and Allied Plants.

Aside from the pteridology, the excursion also provided fascinating insights into other
aspects of the flora and fauna, and into the history, geography and culture of New Zealand.
Thus most of us started out being unfamiliar not only with the ferns, but also with the rest
of the vegetation, particularly the trees. But soon we found ourselves coming to grips with
Maori names like rimu, kauri and totara for three of the common and majestic species of
large trees under which the ferns were growing.

New Zealand spreads across latitudes equivalent to Southern France, Spain and North
Africa in the Northern Hemisphere, but it has a much wetter climate. The distinctiveness of
the New Zealand flora derives from its geographical isolation from other major land-
masses: the nearest is Australia which lies over 1,000 miles to the west. About 40% of New
Zealand’s ferns are endemic, that is, do not occur naturally elsewhere. Very few of them are
available commercially in the UK, but the BPS spore list usually contains a fair selection of
New Zealand species.

Christchurch and Port Hills (Saturday 12 February)

The excursion started on Friday 11th February, in the Country Glen Lodge Motel in
Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island of New Zealand. Weather in Christchurch
that day had been fine, sunny and about 20°C, with a moderate wind. Some members of the
party had arrived a few days previously and had visited the Botanic Gardens which has a
useful collection of New Zealand ferns, some of which grew in a fern house with walls
made from tree-fern trunks. My wife and I had flown in from Australia that afternoon,
while some others did not get in till near midnight. When we assembled on the Friday
evening, introductions were made, old friends feigned surprise at meeting each other in
such a faraway place, and then J ennifer briefed us on the programme for the next few days.

The next morning, after an early start to pick up the six pre-arranged hire cars, we made our
way southwards out of Christchurch to the rendezvous point, about 30 minutes away in the
Port Hills on the edge of the Banks Peninsula. Here we were met at the Sugar Loaf
Viewpoint by the first of three fern experts who had migrated from the UK to New Zealand,
Professor John Lovis of the University of Canterbury in Christchurch. It was a good place
to take pictures of the city of Christchurch, about 500 metres lower in altitude on the
Canterbury Plain below. A harrier hawk made purposeful passes across the grassy landscape.

The excursion proper started a short drive away at Mount Cavendish, which at first looked
somewhat unpromising for fern hunting. The scene was of parched, rolling hills, with long
yellow grass and no sign of water. But it was a special habitat — what John Lovis called a
‘hot-rock site’ on account of the dark basaltic outcrops taking up the sun’s heat and, one
would have thought, cooking the adjacent vegetation. Nevertheless, ferns lurked in the
crevices, and quite abundantly too. A stroll down the tarmac road in the squintingly bright
light soon revealed a total of nine species of fern in the roadside rocks and banks. There
was a good-sized patch of the New Zealand bracken, Pteridium esculentum, in the dry
grassland below the road. This plant is much more wiry than our British species and has
primary and secondary rachises of a prominent orange-brown colour. Then, in the rocky

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embankment at the roadside, we found the delightful Pleurosorus rutifolius. Much film was
expended on this rarity, which John Lovis said would usually have shrivelled by this date
but had been preserved by an unusually wet summer. Unfortunately, this was the only time
we saw Pleurosorus on the whole excursion. Nearby were two species of Cheilanthes,
C. sieberi (= humilis) and C. distans, and also Pellaea calidirupium. A familiar-looking
Polypodium was, we were assured by John Lovis, none other than P. vulgare, which he
described as ‘adventive’, i.e. introduced. We also saw our first New Zealand Polystichum,
P. richardii, which subsequently became a common sight. Considerable pleasure was
generated by finding two ferns that were not on the expert’s list for that locality, Asplenium
abellifolium and A. terrestre.

Our second site was nearby, on the Lyttelton Reserve at Mount Pleasant, about 500m
altitude. A short walk uphill through grassland brought us to the base of a south-facing and
therefore (in the Southern Hemisphere) shaded, basalt cliff and led into scrub woodland,
where altogether the fern flora expanded to 22 listed species. There was moisture in deep
crevices in shady rocks and small gullies, and further shelter in shallow caves and behind
bushes. It was also a place of great scenic beauty, with the azure waters of Lyttelton
Harbour a long way below and surrounded by the crater rim of an extinct volcano. This was
the view where subsequently we enjoyed our packed lunches, with musical entertainment
from bellbirds. Here we had our first taste of the richness in blechnums and aspleniums,
which is such a feature of the New Zealand fern flora. In a short distance along the base of
the cliff and into the woodland there were B. chambersii, B. fluviatile, B. montanum,
B. vulcanicum, B.procerum and_ B. procerum/capense complex, plus Asplenium
flabellifolium, A. gracillimum, A. hookerianum, A. lyallii and A. terrestre. Rather stunted
Rumohra adiantiformis grew in rock crevices, while Phymatosorus diversifolius scrambled
epilithically, its strap-shaped fronds becoming pinnate as they enlarged. Among other
delights were the minute Grammitis ciliata, the familiar house plant Pellaea rotundifolia,
the unfamiliar Adiantum cunninghamii and more Polystichum richardii. The expert’s list
for the locality had five species of Hymenophyllum on it, all marked as rare. Of these,
H. multifidum and H. rarum were observed by some, but I personally did not see them. The
path also gave us our first sight of the fearsome-spined New Zealand nettle, Urtica ferox, a
prickly bush whose sting was said to be severe. On the plus side it is a food plant for red
and yellow admiral butterflies.

After lunch, our third location was a few kilometres away at Ohamu Bush Reserve, near
Gibraltar Rock. Here the roadside bank was rich in the common blechnums — B. fluviatile,
B. chambersii and B. discolor, and aspleniums — A. gracillimum, A. hookerianum,
A. flabellifolium and A. terrestre, with possible hybrids (as if the Asplenium flora wasn’t
complicated enough!). We steered well clear of the deadly Urtica ferox that was present in
abundance at the roadside. After a short, but photographically prolonged, walk up the road,
we entered the wooded Omahu Reserve, which had only recently been fenced off from
cattle and sheep and had therefore not reached its full species diversity. For example, tree-
ferns (Cyathea smithii and Dicksonia squarrosa) were present only as very young and
untrunked plants. Although our eyes were on the ferns, we could not help noticing that the
trees also deserved attention. There was a large tree fuchsia (Fuchsia excorticata) with
distinctive, peeling, bright reddish-brown bark and a species whose common name was
‘five fingers’ (Pseudopanax arboreus). Our second Polystichum, P. vestitum, with its
shining green fronds was prominent. The track through the Reserve was mostly through

Leptolepia amt pet the Hypolepis species, H. millefolium and H. rufobarbata and
finally, the scrubby and tangled Paesia scaberula, which we were later to see elsewhere.

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On reassembling at the exit from the Reserve, Jennifer thanked John Lovis for all his efforts
during the day and for providing such rich insights into New Zealand ferns.

Christchurch to Arthur’s Pass (Sunday 13 February)

The second day differed from the previous one in being less structured, in having no local
guide, and in giving us, after midday, very wet weather on the high ground at Arthur’s Pass.
Our route was westwards out of Christchurch and across the Canterbury Plain, an
agricultural region. The route went across rivers with the braided gravel bars in midstream
that are so characteristic of New Zealand. We were also introduced to another recurring
feature of New Zealand rivers, namely the single-track road bridges, where driver priority-
direction alternates on successive bridges along the route. The terrain had by now become
mountainous, with long screes reaching to the tops, and lupins and viper’s bugloss by the
roadside. It was an empty land, with no farms, homes or villages. The first scheduled stop
was at Lake Lyndon, in the foothills of the Southern Alps at an altitude of 850m. Here the
attraction was Pilularia novae-zelandiae on two stony lakeshore sites. The party divided;
both groups found what they thought might be Pilularia but which turned out to be a
deceptive monocot.

The next stop was at Castle Hill, a ‘karst’ landscape at 900m, consisting of tall and oddly-
shaped limestone outcrops on hilly grasslands. Part of the group was taken around by a very
knowledgeable Maori guide from the Parks Service who pointed out rock paintings in
charcoal and a white pigment. Among the ferns were the tiny, epilithic Grammitis

umbelliferous plant that the Maoris gathered for its roots, which were steamed. The day had
been dry so far

We checked into the isolated Bealey Hotel, an oasis of habitation in an otherwise empty
land, with a stone moa outside. From there it was a short distance through forested country
to Arthur’s Pass Village where the Visitor Centre provided shelter as rain came on. The
torrential rain and strong wind did not stop some of us from driving the extra few
kilometres to Arthur’s Pass Summit, at 940m. Here, at the start of Dobson Nature Walk,
ours were the only cars in the car park, not surprising in view of the weather which was not
welcoming for walkers. Polystichum vestitum and a new blechnum, B. penna-marina, were
abundant, together with B. montanum. There were also two lycopodiums, L. scariosum and
L. fastigiatum, creeping through the other vegetation, and a Hypolepis, probably
H. millefolium. The route took us uphill through subalpine scrub, which would have been
very heavy going without the gravel track and boardwalk sections through it.
Hymenophyllum villosum was common on the ground, while Grammitis patagonica was
quite abundant as an epiphyte. We found a single patch of Lycopodium australianum.
Among the angiosperms there was a white-flowered gentian and the large-leaved
Ranunculus lyallii. After beating a retreat from the deluge on the high ground, we returned
to the hotel to change into dry clothes and then some had a walk, not scheduled on the
programme, in the nearby Waimakiriri Forest. This yielded several blechnums, Polystichum
vestitum, abundant Grammitis (possibly G. billardierei) on earth banks and two species of
filmy fern.

Arthur’s Pass to Hokitika (Monday 14 February)

On the third day we left the Bealey Hotel in rain and mist and drove along the mostly well-
surfaced, but unreliable road through Arthur’s Pass. This road is noted for being liable to
closure in the winter because of snow and at all times because of washout or blockage due
to piles of rock that come down the steep and unstable slopes on either side. Having
crossed the Pass, the countryside became open and rolling. For the first time on the

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expedition, tree-ferns became prominent, and then abundant, in the woods and clearings.
Initially they were Dicksonia squarrosa but we also saw a few D. fibrosa, with their bulky
skirt of unshed, withered fronds. Less abundant was Cyathea smithii, easily recognised by
its skirt of cane-like stipes and rachises denuded of laminae, and C. medullaris, majestic
with its thick black stipes and large stature. Our destination, after the 114 km drive, was the
jade centre of Hokitika on the west coast. Here, mid-morning at the Visitor Centre, we were
enthusiastically welcomed by two ladies from the Nelson Fern Society, Edith Shaw and
Pamela Serett. They provided each of us with bulky information packs and then Edith gave
a general talk about the district and its tourist attractions.

After lunch, we all rendezvoused with Edith and Pamela at Lake Kaniere (150m alt.), about
15km from Hokitika, where we took the Kahikatea Walk through mixed
‘deciduous/podocarp’ forest. The sign at the start of the walk described it as requiring ten
minutes, but not for pteridologists who have to stop every few paces; I believe it took us
two hours. Additional to the ferns, we had some of the prominent trees identified for us:
lancewood, in its juvenile form with downward-pointing narrow leaves at the apex of the
trunk, rimu, with graceful weeping foliage and white pine, actually a podocarp. The forest
itself was a fairyland of ferns. At the entrance was a colony of Phymatosorus diversifolius;
there was also a delightful spread of Sticherus cunninghamii. Many of the ferns had already
been seen on the previous two days and were becoming slightly familiar. There was
Blechnum discolor, with its silvery underside on each frond, B. novae-zelandiae — the
largest of the blechnums, B. fluviatile with rounded pinnae, B. chambersii, the nearest to
our B. spicant, and B. nigrum, rather inconspicuous on the forest floor. Other ground ferns
were Histiopteris incisa — the batwing fer, Paesia scaberula in a forest clearing,
Pneumatopteris pennigera and the delicate Leptolepia novae-zelandiae, along with
abundant Asplenium bulbiferum. Two other ground ferns that gave especial pleasure were
the crape ferns, Leptopteris hymenophylloides and L. superba, the latter known as the
Prince of Wales Feathers. On a rotting branch, Pyrrosia eleagnifolia was spreading its
small ovate leaves from creeping rhizomes, while above head height were the tree-ferns,
mainly Dicksonia squarrosa and Cyathea smithii. Among the epiphytes, the primitive fern-
ally, Tmesipteris elongata, caused some excitement and was much photographed. We also
saw a good selection of filmy ferns, both Hymenophyllum species — H. dilatatum,
flabellatum, ferrugineum, demissum, multifidum, sanguinolentum, scabrum and villosum,
and Trichomanes — T. venosum, with a prominent bristle in each sporangium and
T. reniforme, the kidney fern, scrambling up trees like ivy in British woodland. Other
epiphytes were Ctenopteris heterophylla, Rumohra adiantiformis, Asplenium flaccidum and
A. polyodon. The feeling at the end of this walk was that we were gaining good familiarity
with many of the ferns that only three days previously had been quite strange.

The West Coast [Sylvia Martinelli]
The central portion of the western side of South Island is dominated by the high mountains
of the Southern Alps, whose flanks form the west coast line itself. These mountains are
sedimentary rock called greywacke, made by compression of sand under the sea; other
sedimentary layers of mud and silt forming white quartz and feldspar are interposed. The
prevailing winds are caught on the west coast, depositing their heavy burden of rain all the
year round. The proximity of the mountains to the sea makes this a very wet and ferny area,
with a low population of humans and even of sheep.

Hokitika to Fox Glacier (Tuesday 15th February)

The West Coast of New Zealand would be better named the Wet Coast, for it rains on
average five days out of seven throughout the year. It was to live up to its reputation for our
two days there! The trip from Hokitika to Fox Glacier township took 2/2 hours along a road
sandwiched between grey sea and a grey, wet, wooded but otherwise almost featureless

209

landscape, only relieved by glimpses
of grey mountains through
occasional clearings in the mist and
rain. Blechnum novae-zelandiae
clothed the roadside banks, while
Dicksonia squarrosa and Cyathea
smithii were much in evidence in the
forest flora.

After morning coffee in Fox Glacier,
we parked in a lay-by on the edge of
the town, on the main north-south
coast road, and gathered in the
pouring rain at the beginning of the
Minnehaha forest track to listen to
Edith’s description of the site and its
ora. The edge of the forest
burgeoned with Polystichum
vestitum and the ever present
Blechnum novae-zelandiae, conifers
such as Prumnopitys ferruginea
Pamela Serrett and Edith Shaw. (Miro/brown pine) and P. taxifolia
(Matai/black pine), angiosperm trees

and shrubs such as coprosmas, pittosporums, Metrosideros umbellata, the occasional
Pseudopanax sp. and several other species including Dicksonia squarrosa, which formed
the canopy of the forest, whilst Cyathea smithii was abundant as an understorey tree.
Species of Metrosideros usually begin life as an epiphyte perched on a host tree and
develop as a liane. Their aerial roots grow down towards the ground, gradually enclosing
the trunk, whilst the branches eventually develop a large crown which suffocates the crown

photo: RG. Ackers

Massive proportions. New Zealand boasts a number of Metrosideros species, commonly
known as Tatas, which are a profusion of red or white blossom in season. Nothofagus
species, the southern beech as they are popularly known in Europe, are not present in this
area hence its description as ‘beech-poor’ by Edith

was the forest in ferns, especially filmy ferns, which, of course, were all still unfamiliar to
the majority of the party. Some were exquisitely tiny and required close-up viewing with a
hand lens to appreciate their distinctive characters. Tutoring a group of twenty people on
filmy ferns in the field can be a long task! Gradually, the party dispersed further into the
forest, leaving those interested in the minutiae of Tmesipteris, Hymenophyllum and
Grammitis species. I was lured by the carboniferous look of the thick vegetation, thick tree-
trunks at odd diagonals leaning on hapless tree-ferns, and many fallen nurse trees in the
Swampy ground. The fallen tree-ferns ran along the ground then turned up through 90
degrees making a comical sight. Everything was covered in a lurid green film of moss,
lichen, leafy liverworts, epiphytic ferns and flowering epiphytes including orchids. No hint
of grey or brown bark was visible. This surely must be quite one of the most verdant places
to be found, and yet quite spooky in the drizzling rain.

When the translucent round fronds of Trichomanes reniforme, swathed around many tree-
trunks, caught the light, the sight was breath-taking. Interestingly, few fronds bore spores,
= this held for all locations in which we found this species. One huge old trunk of
Weinmannia racemosa, with its pittosporum-like leaf, was covered in a multitude of
epiphyte species, the ferns including Hymenophyllum flexuosum, H. ferrugineum (olive-

210

coloured with gold hairs), H. flabellatum (with bright green pinnae reminiscent of
Asplenium flabellifolium), A. flaccidum subsp. flaccidum, Ctenopteris heterophylla,
Phymatosorus diversifolius and Grammitis billardierei. Astelias, with their narrow, grass-
like leaves predominated among the angiosperms. Despite the damp, there were fewer
Asplenium flaccidum than one might have expected, but A. bulbiferum was prolific, though
rarely with bulbils; could it have been A. gracillimum with which it can be readily confused
by the newcomer to the New Zealand flora? Even the tree-ferns were clothed in epiphytes:
Rumohra adiantiformis grew amongst the dead fronds of Dicksonia fibrosa along with two
species of Hymenophyllum. These tree-ferns (D. fibrosa and Cyathea smithii) grew to 7 to 8
metres in height, although there were many young specimens mingled with a lot of young
Schefflera plants. The constant year-round heavy rainfall meant that even large ground
dwelling ferns, such as Asplenium bulbiferum and Blechnum fluviatile, could grow as
epiphytes. It was a surprise to hear the cicadas ‘singing in the rain’!

Alongside the bank of the creek, which the track followed for some distance, were plants of
Blechnum discolor, B. colensoi and giant clumps of Pneumatopteris pennigera, the giant
aspect of the Pneumatopteris suggesting that they really like a good dowsing. A tunnel of
trees covered the stream, all dripping with epiphytic hymenophyllums and moss and lichen
streamers. A ‘drunken’ tree-fern, held up by a Schefflera, was laden with three foot long
Tmesipteris plants!

This extremely beautiful forest was one of the ferniest ecosystems we were to visit on the
excursion in terms of both the number of species and general abundance of ferns. Amongst
the many hymenophyllums noted were H. demissum, H. ferrugineum, H. flabellatum,
H. flexuosum, H. multifidum, H. revolutum and H. scabrum. Another epiphytic filmy fern
was Trichomanes venosum. On the ground grew more Blechnum species: B. chambersii,
B. fluviatile, B. penna-marina and B. nigrum. The B. nigrum looked exactly that and was
rather small, insignificant and difficult to find, growing as it did away from the path.
Leptopteris superba abounded in some areas and though scruffy compared with plants seen
elsewhere, was nevertheless fascinating with its feathery olive green fronds. One of these

photo: J.M. Ide

Forest on Minnehaha Walk, Fox Glacier, New Zealand.

211

Prince of Wales ferns seen by the stream had perhaps 20-30 fronds and measured two
metres across. Asplenium polyodon was hiding amongst tree roots but also occurred as an
epiphyte with fronds up to one metre long. Other members of the party spotted Leptolepia
novae-zelandiae, Phymatosorus diversifolius and Lycopodium varium. A pond was fou
with a profusion of enormous tadpoles, apparently of the Australian whistling frog.
Tmesipteris elongata and T. tannensis, these fascinating epiphytic ferns lacking roots, were
both found. T. elongata is distinguished by the rounded distal ends of its sporangia and
tapering leaf apices, whilst 7. tannensis has pointed sporangia and blunt leaf apices ending
in a long spine-like tip.

Our next site was a tourist path descending by steps to a bridge over the Fox River which
gave a view of Fox Glacier. There were fewer species to be seen along this path compared
to the Minnehaha track and only two new species were recorded: Blechnum vulcanicum and
Lastreopsis hispida. There was the chance for those who did not see it on the Minnehaha
track to see Blechnum colensoi, the waterfall fern, in its typical habitat, its fronds hanging
down the steep, perpetually dripping, wet banks that flanked the path. Asplenium polyodon
was seen as a terrestrial fern, its more typical habit in the far south of New Zealand; in the
rest of the country it is more commonly epiphytic. As we walked along the path we were
enveloped in the heavenly scent reminiscent of benzoic acid belonging to the epiphytic
Easter orchid, Earina autumnalis, its long drooping inflorescences just coming into bloom.
At the bottom, the suspension bridge crossed a glacial torrent milky with suspended rock
flour. This walk ended with another of Edith and Pam’s delightful teas of home-made
cakes.

We arrived at the car park for Lake Matheson in pouring rain and set off to walk around the
lake after admiring the bank of Blechnum vulcanicum and Sticherus cunninghamii, among
which were two or three specimens of Cyathea colensoi, along with the ever present Paesia
scaberula and Histiopteris incisa. Cyathea colensoi is a prostrate(!) tree-fern, with
distinctively hairy upper leaf surfaces and lower surfaces with red stellate hairs. Not far into
the walk, in the forest, Lindsaea trichomanoides was seen by those privileged to understand
a much corrupted word of mouth message passed between groups of drenched, struggling
fern-hunters! Other species new for the day were Blechnum procerum, Cyathea dealbata,
Diplazium australe, Hymenophyllum rarum, H. sanguinolentum, H. villosum, Hypolepis
ambigua, Lycopodium volubile, Pteridium esculentum and Pyrrosia eleagnifolia.
Trichomanes reniforme was particularly abundant, both as an epiphyte and terrestrially.
Noisy frogs were heard but not seen in the river which was never far from the path. Few
members actually made it to the lake, for by now most had had enough of the incessant
drenching rain; careful observation, let alone recording by note or photograph was
impossible; the car park café was much more inviting! A pity, for Lake Matheson is one of
a number of chocolate-box views to be found in New Zealand.

Fox Glacier to Westport (Wednesday 16 February)

Overnight 15cm of rain fell causing the rivers to swell to brown torrents, and it was still
falling when we left to drive to Westport, the trees and mountains again wreathed in cloud,
not encouraging roadside touristic or ferning stops. The forests were full of tree-ferns and
the ‘silver birch-like’ Nothofagus menziesii became increasingly common as we travelled
north. Near Franz Joseph Glacier snow was seen on the tops of the mountains when the
mist cleared and a good view of the glacier could be had from the road. In between the
zones of forest were damp meadows with abundant Rumex, flag iris, pampas, Phormium
tenax, cordylines, senecios, Juncus and grazing cows, inter-mixed with patches of maquis-
like vegetation. Less attractive were the conifer plantations and the non-native Eucalyptus
planted along the road. In pockets protected from the sea-breezes tree-ferns flourished, but
in the direct wind, trees took on an alpine, ‘krumholz’ appearance.

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After coffee in Hokitika, around which town Cyathea medullaris reappeared, we continued
north, driving straight through the aptly named Greymouth to Punakaiki. From Greymouth
the road runs close to the coast, the sea never being far from sight. The vegetation changed
rapidly from ‘maquis’ to reed swamps and broadleaf woodland undergrown with Blechnum
novae-zelandiae. Along the seaward side of the road were tree-ferns, and irids were
common. The bush on both sides was full of alien gorse, heather and spectacular yellow-
flowered hedychiums. Towards Punakaiki, we had our first sighting of the nikau palm
(Rhopalostylis sapida), New Zealand's only native palm, often growing in groves. Also
characteristic of this area are the tall thin trunks of Cyathea cunninghamii in the mixed
forest. Abundant Paesia scaberula, Pteridium esculentum and cordylines (cabbage trees)
typify the roadside vegetation. A tumbling hillside of Phormium sp. (New Zealand Flax)
and Dracophyllum spp. was noteworthy.

We arrived at Punakaiki in time for lunch and afterwards, in the pouring rain, we walked
the spectacular track through the narrow belt of forest to the famous Punakaiki rocks and
blowholes. These horizontally layered limestone rocks, strangely stacked and sculptured,
are eroded so that they appear like giant stacks of grey pancakes, hence their popular name,
‘pancake rocks’. The proximity of the sea is probably responsible for the curious
appearance of the coastal vegetation which was wooded close to the road, the dominant tree
species being tree-ferns (mainly Dicksonia squarrosa), nikau palms and Weinmannia
racemosa, gradually becoming more open towards the sea, where Phormium cookianum,
with leaves standing up to two or more metres in height, was common, along with the
persistent nikau palms. It was perhaps the most fascinating site of our visit, so different was
it. Apart from the tree-ferns it had something of the appearance of a Mediterranean garden
which had gone wild. Of particular interest in the open communities were Asplenium
oblongifolium and A. obtusatum, both typical coastal ferns, the latter particularly enjoying
salt spray, and in the closed woodland community a Pteris, known about for many years but
still as yet unnamed. Also seen in the woodland were Adiantum cunninghamii, Blechnum
chambersii, Asplenium bulbiferum, A. polyodon, A. flaccidum, Rumohra adiantiformis,
Phymatosorus scandens and P. diversifolius, the latter five all being epiphytes. It was
useful finding the two Phymatosorus species growing in close proximity as it allowed one
to grasp the differences between them. The fronds of P. diversifolius are morphologically
more varied than the pinnatifid, narrowly segmented fronds of P. scandens. More readily
distinctive, however, are the rhizomes, fleshy green with dark appressed scales in
P. diversifolius and much thinner with erect dark scales in P. scandens. The latter is also
more frequently totally epiphytic.

The stiff upward pointing leaves of the nikau palms provide little shade and few attractive
niches for epiphytes. The old fronds of the palm fall to the ground complete with their huge
leaf bases, so woe betide any animal or plant they happen to fall on!

Just north of Punakaiki we followed the Truman Track through the coastal forest; still it
was pouring with rain! This was another weird jungle with tree-ferns, including Cyathea
cunninghamii, which we were seeing today for the first time in any number. Many of the
ferns we now recognised as common in South Island were present, but among the more
interesting were the epiphytic Tmesipteris elongata and T. tannensis, many Hymenophyllum
species (always a fascination to pteridologists from western Europe and possibly the
Americans amongst us) Asplenium gracillimum (smaller and usually non-bulbiferous
compared to A. bulbiferum of which it was once considered a subspecies), and the delicate

eleagnifolia, a succulent high epiphyte well adapted to dry conditions as we were to note in
the drier North Island where it was common. When the track emerged onto the coastal cliffs

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we found Asplenium obtusatum and Blechnum blechnoides. An interesting side track from
the main one took one into a totally different type of community with Podocarpus totara
and Dacrydium cupressoides as the dominant species, both magnificent trees capable of
reaching 30 metres and important timber trees; the ground vegetation was almost a pure
sward of Blechnum discolor stretching throughout, a truly amazing and beautiful sight. The
reason for this sudden and local change in the vegetation we did not know, but a change in
soil type might be responsible.

Cape Foulwind was so named by Captain James Cook because of the contrary winds he
experienced there and not because of the foul fishy smell, carried on the wind, emanating
from its famous seal colony! In the evening light, the rain at last having stopped, this was a
fitting place to end the day’s ferning. Expecting to just drool over a fur seal colony, we also
found many ferns on the seaside rocks and cliffs. However, one first had to escape the
attentions of the rather insistent wekas (a scrub hen) before starting up the cliff path. On the
cliff-like banks were small clumps of Blechnum blechnoides and Asplenium obtusatum
which delight in this maritime exposure, as well as many other, by now familiar, ferns.

Westport to Nelson (Thursday 17 February)

This could be called the Cornwall of South Island except that it has none of Cornwall’s
bleakness. The coast appears gentle with less strident mountains behind it and supports a
much larger human population than the whole of the long west coast of New Zealand. It is
famous for hippy-like settlements, potters, artists, market gardens, and above all, fine
Sauvignon Blanc! The vegetation in this mildest of districts harbours some northern species
at their southern-most limit and vice versa.

We left Westport for Nelson, the road turning directly inland and following the long,
winding Buller River valley through farmland, mostly down to grazing pastures and large
plantations of the non-native Pinus radiata, especially on the second half of the journey to
Nelson. Any evidence of native vegetation for approximately the last 50 miles to Nelson
was sadly lacking. This change in land use is a reflection of the increasingly drier climate as
one leaves the West Coast and travels east across South Island. A common and abundant
weed is the European gorse. The principal roadside fern was Blechnum discolor, but the
usual opportunistic group were apparent as well: Paesia scaberula, Blechnum novae-
zelandiae, Pteridium esculentum, and several of us, despite the pressure of time, felt we

oe must stop to photograph

cascadin Lycopodium
volubile on the roadside
utting the pass. Paul

also found Blechnum penna-
marina, B. vulcanicum,
Ctenopteris heterophylla,
Phymatosorus diversifolius,
Grammitis sp., Hypolepis
rufobarbata, Dryopteris
affinis(!) and Polystichum

vestitum.

Eileen Heatherbell’s garden
at Richmond, near Nelson,

photo: A.M. Paul f

was our first official stop 0

Jacques Homés and Esther Balasse i in front of the afternoon. A small,
Eileen | ey s fernery, Richmond, New Zealand. formally out suburban

214

garden, it contained so many surprises. To one side of the house, under a glass roof, was a
bed waist high with ferns, which collection anyone would envy. Dicksonia squarrosa
trunks, some sprouting, formed the walls of a fernery roofed over with two layers of shade
netting. Inside, a path wound between slightly raised, terraced beds containing such
treasures as Pellaea calidirupium, the so-called hot-rocks Pellaea seen at Port Hills. It was
pleasing to see the native Nephrolepis hirsutula, N. cordifolia, an alien, being so much
more common in the wild and in cultivation. It seemed that all imaginable was there, from
tree-ferns to epiphytic Pyrrosia eleagnifolia, and all attractively displayed.

A number of the party went to see the Marsden Valley Road Nelson Area School’s re-
vegetation project overseen by Edith. The area contained its original native trees, which
included the large, spreading Melicytus ramiflorus in flower, giving a heavy jasmine scent
to the air, and the small, dense shrub, Macropiper excelsum with its heart-shaped leaves.
The aim of the project was to re-introduce as many as possible of the herbaceous plants that
had died out. These included many ferns, such as the smooth Lastreopsis glabella and
velvety L. velutina. The climbing Blechnum filiforme and Phymatosorus scandens were
particularly abundant. Other species seen included Blechnum chambersii, B. penna-marina,
Polystichum_ richardii, Pellaea rotundifolia, Phymatosorus diversifolius, Asplenium
flaccidum, A. hookerianum, A. oblongifolia, A. gracillimum, A. bulbiferum, Pteris tremula,
Pneumatopteris pennigera and Pyrrosia eleagnifolia. Dense shade, rotting twigs and leaves
on the ground, few plants on the floor other than ferns and the deafening shrill of cicadas
gave the area a genuine feel.

Another party went to the Nikau Native Plant Nursery in Nelson, where Michael Crawford
showed them around. The quality of the plants was particularly impressive and it was useful
to be able to compare at close hand young plants of Dicksonia lanata (not yet seen in the
wild), Cyathea cunninghamii and C. dealbata.

That evening we had a group supper at the Quayside Restaurant with Edith and Pam, after
which we joined the Nelson Fern Society in Jaycees Hall at Founders Park, a restored
village. Several of us had taken photographic slides of ferns from different parts of the
world and we gave a series of short presentations. Alan Ogden treated us to ferns of
Canada, Graham Ackers — Macaronesia, Michel Boudrie — French Guyana, Sylvia
Martinelli — Chile, Ken Wilson, some rare ferns of Hawaii, while Jennifer Ide described a
sample of the large range of varieties of British ferns in cultivation in Britain. Afterwards,
members of the NFS provided a feast of home-made cakes and savouries.

Nelson to Blenheim (Friday 18 February)

To the left of one of the main gates of Queen’s Park Gardens in Central Nelson is a large
area reclaimed in recent years from a neglected area surrounding an old public toilet block.
The overgrown, rank vegetation was removed with the volunteer help of prisoners from the
local prison under the supervision of Edith Shaw. Only the healthy trees, including some
large sequoias, were retained. The soil was very poor and a huge effort was directed into
bringing in rotting tree-trunks from the wild to act as nurseries for epiphytes and to
encourage mycorrhiza and soil decomposition bacteria. Once ready to receive plants, again
under Edith’s supervision, members of the Nelson Fern Society planted the area with native
New Zealand ferns; a vast project requiring many hundreds of plants. Now mature, it is a
most impressive planting, with the ferns in magnificent condition, but the sad thing is that,
like gardens accessible to the public anywhere, plants are frequently stolen and so relatively
rare species, such as Anarthropteris lanceolata, have had to be removed to a place of
safety, since they cannot be continually replaced. For the same reason, none of the plants
are labelled. We were delighted to be allowed to collect spores here. Some of us met
centenarian (104 years, to be exact) Irene Thomas, the patron of the Nelson Fern Society.
After visiting the fernery, some members took the opportunity to visit the garden of Joy

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Bonnington, another long standing member of the NFS with an outstanding collection of
ferns, while the rest spent more time in Queen’s Park Gardens, admiring its many mature
trees, native and otherwise, its attractive lake and noting the Boer War memorial.

From Nelson we made our way to Pelorus Bridge Reserve in a limestone area about
halfway between Nelson and Picton. After lunch we saw a grove of very old and
magnificent Dicksonia fibrosa famous for their multi-trunks, a phenomenon not usually
associated with this species. We then crossed the road and, accompanied by members of the
Nelson Fern Society, followed a circular track through typical lowland beech (Nothofagus)
forest bisected by the Pelorus River. Here, for the first time for many days, it was dry
underfoot and not raining overhead! Bright purple Dianella nigra berries, on their cotton-
fine stems amidst lily-like leaves, provided colour in the floor vegetation and Dacrydium
cupressoides, rimu, much more common on the wet West Coast than in the drier areas of
South Island, was obvious amongst the beeches by its drooping branches. Thirty-two
pteridophytes were recorded in the reserve, most notable of which were Blechnum
procerum and B. vulcanicum, Cyathea dealbata, which had been notably absent on much
of the west coast being a fern of drier areas, Diplazium australe found in the wetter areas,
Leptopteris hymenophylloides, Pellaea rotundifolia, Polystichum richardii, Pteris tremula
and Sticherus cunninghamii. While most of us were still confused by the filmy ferns, seven
were recorded, including Trichomanes venosum — there were some in the party who were
becoming enviously proficient in their identification!

This was the last we would see of Edith and Pamela so we said our goodbyes and expressed
very grateful thanks for all that they had done for us, over the last of the very welcome teas
which they provided at the end of each day’s fern hunting. They were certainly instrumental
in making our ‘paths plain’ for us, ever ready to identify plants ‘with reasons’. They also
provided necessary background information about the general vegetation at each site. It
would have been a much poorer excursion in South Island without them. Thank you very
much for everything, Edith and Pam.

Blenheim to Wellington (Saturday 19 February) [Paul Ripley]

Saturday saw us make the short journey from Blenheim to Picton to catch the ferry to North
Island. The ferry passes through long and picturesque sounds with only a short open sea
crossing. Some of us were lucky enough to see dolphins leaping out of the water near the
boat. Somewhat late due to the disorganisation of Budget Rental cars, we left Wellington,
the capital of New Zealand but by no means its largest city, to travel the 60km or so up the
Hutt valley to the Kaitoke reserve in the Kaitoke waterworks catchment area. Patrick
Brownsey, the second migrant from Britain and co-author of our New Zealand fern ‘bible’,
had had a long wait for us, but we were enormously grateful to him for sharing his
knowledge of the area and his expertise on the flora.

This was again volcanic country, well wooded with low hills, and popular at weekends with
Wellingtonians. We followed the course of a torrent, which feeds one of the city’s
reservoirs, through quite dense and steep woodland. This was Blechnum and tree-fern
country. Blechnums (especially B. novae-zelandiae) fell from every bank. For some of us
this was the first time we had seen Cyathea cunninghamii, the gully tree-fern, with
certainty. The common name of this very slender tree-fern was easily understood as plants
closely followed the course of small streams or flushes. A large number of filmy fern
Species (11 Hymenophyllum and two Trichomanes) were noted growing epiphytically on
trees and Patrick gave us a very useful tutorial on their diagnostic features. Blechnum
filiforme, Grammitis — billardierei and G. ciliata, Asplenium flaccidum, Pyrr osia
eleagnifolia, Tmesipteris tannensis and Phymatosorus (scandens and diversifolius) were
ry quite common epiphytes. Woodland floor plants included Polystichum silvaticum.

‘reopsis (hispida and glabella), Pteris macilenta (not otherwise common), Leptopter's

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hymenophylloides, Adiantum cunninghamii, Aspleniums (A. bulbiferum, hookerianum,
oblongifolium and polyodon), Rumohra adiantiformis and Pneumatopteris pennigera.
Lindsaea trichomanoides and Anarthropteris lanceolata were seen, but, disappointingly,
not by me.

Having made our way down to the bottom of the steep track, very happy with the
afternoon’s ferning, we made our way slowly up to the top again, this time able to take in
the changes in the forest with altitude. Again our thanks go to Patrick Brownsey for
preparing this visit and for his freely-given advice and expertise that had made this such a
fruitful day.

Wellington to Ohakune (Sunday 20 February)

We spent the morning making the long journey north to the town of Ohakune, a ski/walking
resort. At first the road followed the coast, but then turned inland and gradually but steadily
climbed onto a pastoral landscape of grass and sheep. The soft mudstone was cut by
numerous streams making a somewhat chaotic appearance. Eventually the huge bulk of Mt
Ruapehu dominated the view. This is an active volcano (the ski area had to be closed in a
hurry a few years previously), and wisps of steam could be seen rising from side craters on
adjacent hills. We drove up to the Turoa ski centre at c.1800m. The views were wonderful,
but although this barren moonscape yielded some interesting alpine flowers, the diminutive
Grammitis poeppigiana (cleverly spotted by Sylvia) and Lycopodium fastigiatum were the
only pteridophytes found.

Further down, near the Waitonga falls, we parked the cars close to colonies of Blechnum
penna-marina, Paesia scaberula and Histiopteris incisa. Sticherus cunninghamii and
Gleichenia dicarpa were abundant in the sparse, mixed woodland of Nothofagus and
conifer, together with another four Blechnum species (chambersii, discolor, fluviatile and
novae-zelandiae). Leptopteris superba, Grammitis _ billardierei, G. magellanica,
Hymenophyllum mutltifidum, H. villosum, Lycopodium scariosum, Blechnum procerum and
B. banksii were also recorded.

e soon realised that we should have spent much more time at the picnic site. The
vegetation had become progressively more lush as we descended the mountain. Leptopteris
hymenophylloides, Leptolepia novae-zelandiae, Adiantum cunninghamii (outside its normal
range), Asplenium bulbiferum, A. flaccidum, A. polyodon, Blechnum vulcanicum,
Phymatosorus diversifolius and P. novae-zelandiae, Pneumatopteris pennigera and
Polystichum vestitum were among the plants of the woodland floor not seen higher up.
Additionally, the epiphytes Tmesipteris tannensis, Trichomanes venosum and
Hymenophyllum demissum, H. dilatatum, H. flabellatum and H. multifidum were seen here.
The tree-ferns Cyathea smithii and Dicksonia fibrosa were also recorded and also, possibly,
Hypolepis ambigua.

In the evening we were treated to a fascinating account by Viv Nicholls, a friend of Tim
Godfrey, of the flora (and fauna) and ecology of the subantarctic islands south of New
Zealand, notably Campbell Island and the Auckland Islands. Particularly fascinating for me
was the effect of sheep and pigs introduced by the early settlers and the subsequent land
reclamation. One of the drawbacks of our hectic schedule was the shortage of time
available to examine the days’ finds and consolidate records. We had time this evening,
however, and a profitable impromptu Hymenophyllum workshop enhanced our knowledge
of this very well-represented group.

Ohakune to Rotorua (Monday 21 February) {Patrick Acock]

With people making their own way on the long drive north, we arrived at Lake
Rotopounamu at a range of times. The lake was described by Barbara Parris as the best

217

short walk in New Zealand and so it proved to be, for ferns at least. Barbara’s notes said
that over 50 species had been recorded. One record card at least (Alison Paul’s) records 49!
As we set off up the wooded path to the lake it became obvious that we would see most of
the ferns with which we had become familiar by just leaving the trail a few times, but we
were quite keen to see the lake and knew we were more likely to see the new ferns on the
list close to the lakeside.

Around the lake we kept meeting each other, either by catching up the party in front or by
meeting people going the other way around. Towards the end of the circuit I had my first
piece of luck in coming across Botrychium biforme. It was unlike any Botrychium I had
seen before and I was very pleased to have discovered it. When I met the anti-clockwise
party, they had spotted it just ten yards along their trail! Other highlights were Lindsaea
trichomanoides and pendant stems of Tmesipteris tannensis. I still found great joy in seeing
areas of Sticherus cunninghamii and Trichomanes reniforme. Another delight was
Phymatosorus novae-zelandiae, trailing out of the wood in straight lines down towards the
beach. On returning to the car I found our leader had had to go into town on excursion
administration business and had missed all the joys of the morning. She was, however,
determined to see and photograph the Botrychium!

Car by car, we then made our way to Rotorua, most groups stopping by Lake Taupo for
lunch and to see the spectacular view.

Rotorua lies in one of the world’s most active volcanic zones. We visited the most famous
of the thermal reserves and Maori Centres, Whakarewarewa Thermal Reserve, on the
southern edge of the city. There was a paucity of ferns compared to the sites we had visited
so far during the excursion, but 13 pteridophytes were recorded. New to our lists were
Gleichenia microphylla, Hypolepis ambigua and Lycopodium cernuum. We were especially
fascinated by the ferns that were growing epiphytically on the palms and tree-ferns on the
roadside near the Maori Village. Some of the group were pleased to have the opportunity to
see their first kiwi, albeit in a special kiwi house.

Rotorua to Auckland (Tuesday 22 February)

At the thermal reserve yesterday, we had been fascinated by the different thermal activities,
especially those of us who had not seen anything like it before. The famous Pohutu Geyser
was particularly spectacular, shooting close to a height of 20 metres. Today we were to see
really amazing thermal activity and with it came unusual niches for ferns, which meant that
we saw many plants new to the trip and to most of the party.

We made the short (unusual for us) journey to Waimangu Thermal Valley. The scenes were
breathtaking in this relatively new thermal valley, created by the Tarawera eruption of 1886,
which destroyed the glittering pink and white terraces made famous by colonial artists. First
to greet our eyes was a volcanic crater full of boiling water. At the outflow the river kept a
temperature of between 47-60°C. It was strange, to say the least, to put one’s hand into a
river and have to withdraw it because of its heat! In the marshy area away from the stream
we discovered Cyclosorus interruptus, only to be called back, as we had walked past
Psilotum nudum in our haste to see the stream, and then again to see a plant that many of us
knew only from books, Schizaea fistulosa. A whole area of interesting ferns presented itself

Doodia australis was commonplace. A swathe of Nephrolepis cordifolia seemed tolerant of

m the boiling lake on whose bank it was growing and a
shaded bank close to a steamin ° ;

and Deparia petersenii, whilst a Christella species, similar to, but smaller than C. dentata

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and as yet unnamed, seemed to be ‘enjoying’ having its feet in the warm mud at the edge of
the stream. The track through the reserve was estimated to take three-quarters of an hour to
walk, but we had learnt early in the excursion to at least treble these time estimates. A
shuttle bus ran through the reserve, and it was not surprising that most members had to take
it back to the car park for their lunch, but not before many had lingered that little bit longer
to see more fascinating sites down to where the river flowed into the lake. Sylvia was
determined to have a boat ride on the lake, and, of course, Paul was determined to have his
swim, however short.

At the end of the track, as the terrain opened out into rough scrubland, the ever eagle-eyed
Michel Boudrie was the first to observe a new member of the Gleicheniaceae for our
records: Dicranopteris linearis. It was, of course, on the opposite bank of the stream, but
Paul was insistent that we have a closer look at a specimen and paddled through the warm
acidic cocktail of arsenic and molybdenum in his wellies. Close examination showed us the
difference between this and the Gleichenia microphylla we had seen earlier. Michel had
also spotted two aliens — Dryopteris filix-mas and Osmunda regalis — along the track. As
we discussed this on the bus on the way back to the entrance, the driver overheard us and
commented that they had it in mind to weed them out. We were quite impressed that he
should have such a good knowledge of the plants that he knew of these two among so
many. The authorities are particularly sensitive to aliens in this region.

We arrived back at the entrance, late, tired, but pleased with our finds. Some members of
the party had found time to visit the Reserve shop and came away bearing treasures — tee-
shirts and sweatshirts decorated with fern motifs. We now had a long drive to Auckland
where many of us had a meal together in the motel.

Auckland to Whangarei (Wednesday 23 February) {Graham Ackers]

building in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Skytower is clearly visible from the “Auckland Domain’. Within this 80 hectare park-
like terrain there are gardens, playing fields, glasshouses and the Auckland Museum. It was
here that we met Ewen Cameron, who is the Curator of Botany. Ewen’s is one of 11
departments holding collections and the first brief stop of our visit was to the herbarium,
which is housed using a compactor system. One box is allocated to each species and we
viewed specimens of some of the New Zealand native ferns which we had come to know.

Moving on to the Botany Department itself, we saw several members of staff busily
databasing the collection. Laid out for our inspection on a large table was a wonderful
collection of antique pressed fern books, from many sources and in many styles. The star of
the collection was a beautifully bound example with wooden kauri covers inlaid with
exquisite marquetry by Anton Seuffert. There were several of the pressed fern volumes
produced by Eric Craig, a local carpenter who also ran Craig’s Curiosity Shop from which
he sold bound and unbound collections of pressed ferns (as well as other memorabilia). I
suspect many of us would have welcomed a longer stay in the presence of these wonderful
books, but our schedule demanded a move to the Fernz Fernery.

Within the Auckland Domain, the fernery is part of an impressive complex of two
glasshouses and gardens. It was constructed (in the open) on the edge of an extinct volcano,

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and extends from ground level down to two lower levels, all heavily shaded by a small area
of native forest. Three different habitats were created — dry, intermediate, and wet. The
plant list (available on entry to the fernery) gave an impressive 156 fern taxa. Inevitably,
this was probably out of date — some of the labelling was a little suspect, and some ‘weedy’
ferns (Deparia sp. and Paesia scaberula) were having it their own way! Despite this, the
fernery did contain some wonderful ferns, including Marattia salicina (not seen by us in
the wild), all growing in a most evocative and thoughtfully constructed environment.

A few digressions from ferns were possible during our excursion, one of the most enjoyable
being a performance by the Maori group Pounamu (Maori for ‘jade’). For this we returne
to the Museum, and were ceremoniously ushered into the small auditorium. For the next 45
minutes the troupe gave us an emotionally charged performance of Maori heritage,
demonstrating various war stances, rituals, songs, and games, including the well known
haka dance, ti rakau (stick tossing) and poi (swirling flax net balls).

Following some last looks around the Museum and purchases from the shop, we left
Auckland around lunchtime, again heading north and arriving at Whangarei mid to late
afternoon. Whangarei is the largest Northland town, and boasts(!) an oil refinery.
Whangarei Harbour provided pleasant views from our next site, the Parahaki War
Memorial, situated on a hill to the east of the town centre. Although time was restricted, we
did manage to record 43 fern species here. This was surprising, as a previous list
(admittedly 18 years old) gave only 19 ferns. The hill site consisted of regenerating forest,
with various trails leading down the hill through the forest. Gleichenia microphylla was
present en masse in open areas. Although Sticherus cunninghamii was also present, we
gained our first sighting of the attractive S. flabellatus lower down the Ross Track. The site
was productive for Lycopodium, with four species — L. cernuum, L. deuterodensum,
L. fastigiatum and L. volubile. The climbing (and rather weedy) Lygodium articulatum was
noted scrambling over the bush. On a path bank we enjoyed our first sighting of the rare
Loxsoma cunninghamii, a Strange fern bearing a superficial resemblance to Histiopteris
incisa, but having protruding marginal sori and tubular indusia. Fi my ferns were
represented by five species of Hymenophyllum, and two Trichomanes — our old favourite

- reniforme, as well as rather dusty specimens of T. elongatum. Particularly large
specimens of Pneumatopteris pennigera were noted. The stalked Blechnum fraseri, a fern
which we were to see increasingly in the north, was present. We saw the small Lindsaea
trichomanoides, but also the rarer L. linearis. Another rare find was Schizaea dichotoma,
seen growing in somewhat dry heavy leaf litter.

As with several of the sites we explored, a longer visit would have proved most rewarding,
but the party’s need for some relaxation after a long day triggered a move to our motel.
Whangarei to Kerikeri (Thursday 24 February)

We were to end this day in Kerikeri, some 65km (as the crow flies) due north of Whangarei.
However, the route entailed a diversion via Dargaville through rolling farmland in an early

morning mist. This was to enable us to spend the day exploring the Waipoua Forest on the
western side of Northland.

Two hundred years ago, much of the warmer northern part of North Island was forest,
dominated by the giant kauri trees. European man’s intervention, exploiting the kauri for
timber and gum, reduced the extent of these forests to about 4% of their original area.
These remnants are all now under the protection of the Department of Conservation.
Together with its neighbouring forests of Mataraua and Waima, Waipoua constitutes the
largest remaining tract of this type of forest. Like a number of New Zealand endemics,
kauris (Agathis australis) start life as young trees bearing little resemblance to their adult
form, being somewhat spindly, with lanceolate leaves borne on branches extending the

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whole way up the trunk. After 50 or more years, the tree then sheds its lower branches,
eventually to produce a massive straight trunk, devoid of any side branches, and an
enormous crown. Kauri forests contain an abundance of other plants, including the large
trees taraire (Beilschmiedia tarairi), kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile), towai (Paratrophis
banksii) and rata (Metrosideros robusta). Beneath the forest canopy, tall dense stands o
kauri grass (Astelia trinervia) and mapere (Gahnia setifolia) are dominant. Also common
are Mairehau (Phebalium nudum), hangehange (Geniostoma ligustrifolium), neinei
(Dracophyllum latifolium), kiekie (Freycinetia banksii) and, of course, ferns.

We met our guide, Barbara Parris, near the Waipoua Visitor Centre. As many will know,
Barbara (who is English but grew up in New Zealand) is a pteridologist who spent much of
her working life in Britain, but now lives back in New Zealand. She had recommended
many of the sites that we visited throughout our excursion.

Our first site was the short Rickers (= young kauri tree) Track, which ascended into forest
and petered out along a ridge. The main rationale for visiting this track was to see another
rare stand of Loxsoma cunninghamii, again noting the bright silvery colour on the lower
frond surface and the strange tiny sori. As usual, many other species were seen, most
notable being Tmesipteris elongata, several small stands of Blechnum fraseri and straggling
masses of Lygodium articulatum.

The second site, involving a modest car journey, was a pilgrimage to view Tane Mahuta,
the largest kauri tree still standing in New Zealand. Typically, kauris are 30m high, with a
girth of 10m; Tane Mahuta is 51.5m high, with a girth of 13.8m, and is thought to be over
2,000 years old. It was reached by a short boardwalk track, typical of the many excellent
trails constructed by the Department of Conservation. Once again, many ferns were seen
even along such a short trail, particularly noteworthy being numerous Dicksonia lanata.

The third site, a short drive away, was approached from a car park where we had to pay a
guard to prevent our cars being robbed! The forest entrance had apparently suffered a fire
and this was reflected in the fern flora. Gleichenia dicarpa was abundant in this open
habitat, but there were also large stands of Pteridium esculentum and Blechnum novae-
zelandiae. This latter fern is very common in New Zealand, and appears to tolerate a wide
range of light levels, from open roadside banks (where its fronds hang down) to deep forest
floor habitats (where the fronds tend to be erect and very large). One tree in this forest
entrance area had a colony of the uncommon Hymenophyllum armstrongii, causing a
cluster of party members to peer avidly at its diminutive fronds. This fern is uncommonly
seen, being usually a high canopy epiphyte, but this stand was growing at head height. It is
characterised by undivided or forked fronds, black midribs, black, spiny margins and large
rminal sori.

The coach road into the forest led to several tracks, two of which enabled visits to yet more
impressive kauris — Matua Ngahere (the second largest living kauri) and the Four Sisters
(four tall and graceful trees growing extr ly closely together). Another track lead back to
the Visitor Centre. A short excursion down this track revealed several specimens of the
forest form of Blechnum novae-zelandiae as well as some extremely large stands of
B. fraseri, some individuals having slender trunks 1.5m igh. This is a fascinating and
unusual fern, quite common in Northland, and (unusually for a pteridophyte) growing in
dryish clay. Near the point where the party turned back was a stream, close by which were
several plants of another unusual Blechnum, B. nigrum.

Taken as a whole, the three sites had similar fern floras. A total of 55 species were
recorded, including four Asplenium, six Blechnum, four Cyathea, two Dicksonia, nine
Hymenophyllum, two Lycopodium, all four Tmesipteris species and four Trichomanes, the
remaining records being for a single species per genus. One ‘mystery’ fern which is

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patchily common in this and other northern forests, is named Deparia petersenii in the

oras. However, several members of the party felt that it did not resemble closely the
Azores form of this species with which we are familiar. In fact the two forms have been
ascribed to different subspecies by some botanists. Many of the fern species encountered
were epiphytes, and the number growing on dead stumps and fallen logs was particularly
impressive in this forest.

The Waipoua forest is a very special place, being an unspoilt, virgin and ancient forest,
impressive in its grandeur, greenness and beauty. Together with the rain forests of
Westland, these magical forests must rank amongst the finest nature reserves in the world.

Kerikeri (Friday 25 February)

Having travelled to Kerikeri the previous afternoon, our first morning rendezvous with

arbara Parris and Jackie Davidson was a car park by the Kerikeri river, where we all
dutifully posed for the group photograph (taken by Jackie with many cameras!). For the
morning’s excursion we walked the 3km Kerikeri Walkway path which runs alongside the
Kerikeri river. This walk is highly scenic, with lovely river views and two impressive
waterfalls — the first a short distance into the walk, and the second, the Rainbow Falls, at
the end of the walk. The vegetation is secondary forest with a fairly open canopy, the
dominant tree being the totara (Podocarpus totara). Various habitats were present,
including open grassy areas, forest floor, banks, rivulets and tree-trunks. Adiantum
hispidulum was common on_ the path side banks, occasionally accompanied by
A, diaphanum. A few specimens of the tree climbing fern Arthropteris tenella were seen,
but with relatively small fronds. On the other hand, mature fronds of another tree climbing
species Blechnum filiforme were present. As usual, blechnums were common, and possibly
for the first time we felt we could recognise B. membranaceum with confidence (it

photo: R.G. Ackers

Kerikeri, New Zealand.

Jackie & Alastair Wardlaw, Patrick Acock, Sylvia Martinelli, Alison Paul, Agnés & Michel Boudrie,
Christine Mullins (front), Paul & Linda Ripley, Tim Godfrey (back), Grace Acock, Jacques Homes,
ne Marshall-Williams, Esther Balasse, Kenneth Wilson, Graham Ackers Janet Keyes,
ennifer Ide (front), Thomas & Agnes Howshar, Alan Ogden, Barry White, Barbara Parris.

(Not in photo; Joan Loraine.)

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resembles B. chambersii, which was also present). Another interesting find was Doodia
australis. This is similar to D. media, but was given separate species status by Barbara in
1998 on account of slight morphological differences in the stipe and lamina. Grammitis
ciliata was seen for the first time since 1995 (according to Barbara). Six species of
Hymenophyllum were recorded, the site being particularly good for epiphytic ferns. Two
species each of Lastreopsis and Phymatosorus were seen. Four species of Trichomanes
were recorded, one of which, T. endlicherianum was new to us, growing on damp rocks in
a gully. Alison found a very small Trichomanes growing on a Dicksonia squarrosa trunk;
subsequent investigations by Barbara revealed it to be a new addition to the New Zealand
flora!

Two species we encountered, Nephrolepis cordifolia and Selaginella kraussiana, are
widely distributed round the world and are considered in New Zealand to be weeds. The
latter was certainly present in vast carpets along the banks. The Northland Regional Council
encourages the destruction of such weeds, and publishes a very colourful and informative
leaflet entitled ‘Environmental Weeds — Delightful but Destructive’. Most of the villains
are flowering plants, including Tradescantia fluminensis, which was inflicting far more
‘environmental pain’ along the Kerikeri Walkway than was Selaginella. So much so, in
fact, that Barbara had come armed with plastic bags into which we disposed of as much
Tradescantia as was practical during such a walk!

Not all members of the party reached the Rainbow Falls, as some members turned back to
provide a car ferrying service from the Falls back to the car park. The Falls are within a
small area designated as the Rainbow Falls Scenic Reserve. The most notable ferns seen at
this end of the walk were large stands of Sticherus flabellatus and one specimen of
Diplazium australe. The total fern species count for the Kerikeri Walkway was 45.

in a large shade-house, and consists of an impressive number of well grown species (their
current catalogue lists 39). There was also an area set aside within the shade-house for
mother plants, and for Jackie’s own personal collection which included some non-native
ferns, such as Woodwardia orientalis. The party were able to exchange experiences on
propagation and cultivation with Jackie and Tom, hopefully to the mutual benefit of both

high quality and variety, I expect most members of the party would have walked away with
armfuls of plants!

Our next stop was Barbara Parris’ garden. Barbara lives towards the north end of Kerikeri,
on a small valley side. Both the house and location are most impressive, with lovely views
over the Kerikeri Inlet and valley. The garden is large, consisting of lawns, sunny and shady
beds, a large stand of recently planted trees, and some wild bush. In the beds, Barbara
grows a variety of ferns from various parts of the world, and has also an impressive
collection growing in pots. The garden is adjacent to the shore, and we walked this short
distance via an impressive stand of Pyrrosia eleagnifolia growing on a lemon tree, to see
mangroves (Avicennia marina vat. resinifera) literally at the bottom of the garden! Over
welcome glasses of lemonade (it was a very hot day) Jennifer thanked Barbara for her
hospitality and all her help with our excursion.

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Our final activity as a group was to
have an excellent dinner together at

e Kina Kitchen in Kerikeri, and
we were pleased to have the
opportunity to play host to Barbara
and her husband Esmond. Towards
the end of the meal, Alastair
Wardlaw proposed formal thanks
to Jennifer Ide for her monumental
and highly effective organisational
effort, and presented her with a
jade crosier as a memento and
present from us all.

Barbara Parris’ Garden.

Jackie Wardlaw, Jacques Homés,
Michel Boudrie, Esther Balasse,
Barry White, Agnés Boudrie, Barbara
Parris, Ken Wilson, Janet Keyes.

photo: A.M. Paul

Time to disperse — and impressions (Saturday 26 February)
Rather sadly, after such an enjoyable fortnight, we all dispersed, some members of the party
heading home, others staying on in New Zealand

Everyone will have taken away with them many impressions of the excursion, but here are a

few that I found striking:

° Despite the relatively large number of species, most of the party got to grips with the
identification of the ferns quite quickly. The one possible exception to this was the filmy
ferns.

Tree-ferns seemed to be everywhere!
Introduced plants were evident nearly everywhere outside the unspoilt forests, and are

clearly a significant problem in the New Zealand flora. If anything, introduced animals
were even more of a problem.

The Westland rain forests must be amongst the most beautiful places on the world.

Rain almost literally wiped out our second full day’s ferning (Arthur’s Pass), and
persisted somewhat in Westland. In contrast, some days in the north were very hot
indeed.

The amount of travelling, and staying in a different motel every night, became quite

tiring. On the other hand, it Provided the ideal way of seeing as much of New Zealand as

possible in a two-week period, which was of particular value to those of us for whom

this was a first visit.

* New Zealand’s small population (3.5 million in a country only 10% larger than the UK)
results in many parts of the country being very quiet indeed, contrasting markedly (oat

very pleasantly) with our over-populated European countries.

The currency exchange rate was very favourable to UK (and other) visitors, and helped

to keep an expensive excursion within bounds. (Speaking of currency, ferns feature

prominently on New Zealand bank notes and coins!)

The organisation was excellent and virtually trouble free.

This was the Society’s most ambitious excursion so far and, based on its success, others
should certainly follow!

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CHESHIRE & CLWYD - 9-11 June Graham Ackers

The centre for this meeting was the picturesque Cheshire village of Farndon. Some of the
11 party members stayed in the comfortable accommodation provided by the Farndon Arms
and Greyhound Inn, whilst others made alternative arrangements.

On Saturday morning the drive to the first site took us across the English/Welsh border: the
River Dee at the Farndon village boundary. Having skirted Wrexham, the route became
highly scenic, taking us past a lovely wet meadow full of large colourful clumps of ragged
robin and buttercups. We then ascended to the plateau summit of Eglwyseg Mountain,
driving across open heathland, with heather, bilberry and bracken. Further splashes of less
welcome colour were afforded by scattered bushes of Rhododendron ponticum agg. We
parked and met other party members near Worlds End (33/231483). The day started cool
and breezy, but sunshine soon provided welcome warmth.

Eglwyseg Mountain is a remarkable limestone feature with a variety of habitats. Our visit
focused on the two significant ones, a sheltered leafy valley and an exposed mountainside.
We reached the former following a short walk along the road, observing clumps of
Asplenium trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens on a wall en route. When reached, the valley
site was seen to be bordered on the north side by a series of limestone cliffs and rock out-
crops, and on the south side by a woodland slope. A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens was
soon seen again, but this time on natural and not man-made substrates. Clumps of A. ruta-
muraria were also common on the rocks and cliffs. These two species seemed to dominate
the fern flora at the lower end of the valley, but further searching soon yielded a much more
respectable number of species! Dryopteris filix-mas and D. dilatata were scattered in the
valley bottom, with small specimens of D. filix-mas growing also on the cliffs. By the
stream were patches of Equisetum x litorale. A few clumps of Asplenium viride were seen
on shady outcrops on the valley’s south side, but were only found in this one spot. More
common was Cystopteris fragilis, occurring in its typical habitats of horizontal damp
crevices and overhangs. Apart from the two Dryopteris species already noted, other
woodland ferns present were Athyrium filix-femina, Dryopteris affinis agg. (some debate
over subspecies!), two specimens of Polystichum setiferum, and a few plants of
P. aculeatum. One or two Asplenium scolopendrium plants were noted, and a large colony
of Polypodium was seen on an out of reach cliff edge. Dead fronds on the ground suggested
that this was probably P. interjectum. Returning to the lower end of the valley, Blechnum
spicant was seen on the wooded slopes, in company with many D. dilatata. Finally, a small
group of Gymnocarpium robertianum was spotted on scree (but we were to see many more
plants of this species later!).

Our next site was south of Arthur’s Crag, about a mile away (33/223467), reached via the
Offa’s Dyke path. Ferns observed en route were many Dryopteris dilatata in woodland, the
ubiquitous bracken, one large Polystichum setiferum, and a single specimen of Oreopteris
limbosperma (the only one seen over the weekend). The rather spectacular terrain on the
west side of Eglwyseg mountain consists of steeply sloping grassland and scree slopes,
leading up to vertical limestone cliffs. Patches of Gymnocarpium robertianum were
common in the screes, and some plants of Asplenium trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens
were also present. Arthur’s Crag itself is a large impressive limestone cliff outcrop, to the
south of which a mossy, boggy stream descends to the valley below. As with the rest of the
mountain in this region, the terrain near the stream is exposed, the only tree cover
consisting of isolated Sorbus sp. Large limestone boulders occur in the upper reaches of the
stream valley and harboured good fern communities. This is the only part of North Wales
where Dryopteris submontana is currently known, and numerous plants were found
between the boulders. Average frond blade size was around 25cm, larger than the
somewhat stunted specimens seen on the scree, but not so large as some gryke dwelling

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specimens occurring at Pennine sites. Accompanying ferns amongst the boulders were
Cystopteris fragilis, Gymnocarpium robertianum, Asplenium trichomanes _ subsp.
quadrivalens, A. ruta-muraria and a few small plants of A. scolopendrium.

Bonuses of this site (where lunch was taken) were the antics of nesting peregrine falcons,
and the sighting below of two circling buzzards. Both species serenaded our lunch with
their distinctive calls.

In the afternoon, we returned to the cars via a higher path that initially follows the cliff
base, then runs along the cliff tops, finally rounding the top of the Worlds End valley. This
walk, the only serious piece of exercise during the day, was most exhilarating, and afforded
splendid views of the valley and hills to the west.

We then drove to Llangollen, a picturesque, if touristy, town to the south of Eglwyseg
Mountain. Afternoon tea was taken to the accompaniment of the sights and sounds of the
Llangollen Railway, a heritage steam railway that started operations in 1981. The tea-rooms
were beside the Llangollen arm of the Shropshire Union Canal, and we had a most pleasant
stroll along the canal to the east. The main purpose of this activity was to attempt to re-find
Osmunda regalis, previously recorded along the canal banks. Unfortunately, Osmunda was
not found, but ferns observed (on the canal sides and in the canal walls) were Athyrium
filix-femina, Dryopteris dilatata, D. filix-mas, Blechnum spicant, Polystichum aculeatum,
Asplenium scolopendrium and Equisetum arvense. Also seen were Polypodium sp. and
Dryopteris affinis agg. but being on the opposite bank of the canal, it was not possible to
ascertain the species or subspecies respectively.

On the return car journey to Farndon, some of the party made a small detour to view, and
walk across, the impressive Pont Cysyllte aqueduct further along the canal. This completed
our industrial archaeology studies for the weekend! That evening, most of the party
assembled for dinner at the Farndon Arms, where good company and tasty and unusual
food (e.g. ostrich steaks) made for a most enjoyable evening.

On Sunday morning, we drove a few miles east from Farndon to the hamlet of Fullers
Moor. The area explored from there was Bickerton Hill, a National Trust property, being
the most southerly hill of a Cheshire chain running north to Frodsham. This chain
constitutes a ridge of red sandstone, used for local buildings. We climbed along the side of
the hill through dense bracken, observing occasional stands of Dryopteris dilatata in areas
slightly too heavily shaded for the bracken to grow. Single specimens of D. dilatata also
occurred amongst the bracken, but were less easy to spot. Our route took us up and down
the hill a couple of times. At the high vantage-points, we had excellent views ranging from
the Welsh hills to Chester and Liverpool.

At one point, near the top of the hill, we encountered an area of sandstone cliffs, outcrops
and caves (33/503536) which proved to be the most productive for ferns. Forest ferns here
were Athyrium filix-femina, Dryopteris filix-mas, D. affinis subsp. borreri, and Blechnum
spicant. Three rock ferns were seen on the sandstone: Polypodium vulgare occurred as @
large expanse colonising an inclined mossy sandstone outcrop adjacent to a large cave, 4
single plant of Asplenium adiantum-nigrum was seen on the cliff just above head height,
but most interesting were the several plants of Asplenium trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis,
some partly hidden by other vegetation. All displayed the typical habit — fronds appressed
to the substrate, and pronounced pinna lobing. The variability in this lobing was discussed,
being illustrated by drawings in the soil by one member of the party! Sandstone is ple
assumed to be acidic, thus the presence of this calcicolous plant seemed surprising:
However, sandstone can have a calcareous matrix; alternatively, there can be mineral-rich
veins in an otherwise acidic rock.

226

More excellent views, over the Cheshire plain, were enjoyed from our Sunday lunch venue,
the Pheasant Inn at Higher Budwardsley. The weather, overcast and mild, was just warm
enough for us to sit outside!

After lunch, en route to Chester, we stopped to observe some fine specimens of Asplenium
adiantum-nigrum on a roadside wall near Tattenhall (33/497567). Then came the touristy
bit! On arrival in Chester, we hired one rowing boat and one motor boat to sail up the River
Dee. The motor boat hardly deserved the name, being grossly under-powered, and barely
making headway against the current. The rowing boat, on the other hand, powered by a
succession of three swarthy oarsmen, made excellent progress, despite narrowly avoiding
contact with some slightly larger river cruise boats! Our destination was a rather derelict
landing stage, where the river wall was adorned with curtains of Adiantum capillus-veneris
(33/418663). This was very strange and unusual and we could only speculate on their mode
of arrival. The plants seemed to be flourishing and gave the appearance of having been
there for some considerable time.

photo: A.M. Paul

River Dee, Chester. The motor boat from the rowing boat!
Howard Matthews, Linda & Mick Craddock, Steve & Karen Munyard.

Having returned the boats safely (surprisingly!), we took tea, then went our separate ways.
All agreed that the weekend had been highly enjoyable, with good ferns, good company,
excellent scenery and kind weather. For this, no small thanks are due to Paul Ripley, whose
local knowledge and diligent research guaranteed a splendid field meeting.

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ALNMOUTH, NORTHUMBERLAND - 28-30 July Pat Acock

Thirteen of us gathered from all corners of Great Britain, and the USA, for dinner at The
Saddle Hotel, Alnmouth with our leader, Rob Cooke, and to discuss plans for the
weekend’s fieldwork. We were pleased to meet three newer members who had been enticed
out as well as Casey Vickers, a medical student from the USA who had been working on
Dryopteris at The Natural History Museum

Saturday morning found us exploring the wooded area above the River Coquet to the west
of Felton (46/185003), about eight miles south of Alnwick. Along the lane and in the
woods themselves we observed many of the more common woodland ferns: Asplenium
scolopendrium, Dryopteris filix-mas, D. dilatata, D. affinis subspp. affinis and borreri and
Athyrium filix-femina, On the wall of the picturesque church were some fine plants of
Asplenium adiantum-nigrum. In a wet flush in the woodlands we saw both Equisetum
sylvaticum and E. telmateia. E. arvense and Pteridium aquilinum were also recorded, but
searches for Equisetum hyemale (by the river) and Botrychium lunaria (on the hill above
the woods) proved fruitless.

After lunch in Warkworth we set about exploring the nearby dunes to try to chase up a
report of an Eguisetum here and ascertain which species it was. On our way from the car
park (46/256064) we saw Equisetum arvense and E. telmateia. The E. arvense plants were
by far the largest plants of that species ever seen by most of the party. The dunes to the
south-east had plenty of Polypodium vulgare but only small numbers of Dryopteris filix-
mas and D. dilatata, We could not find any sign of the horsetail we were after, so we went
on to Craster. A long stone wall was heavily colonised by Asplenium ruta-muraria and
some A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens. We walked south along the coast for about half a
mile to Cullernose Point (46/259187) to a cliff where every niche was nested by kittiwakes.
Here we found what we had come to see — abundant large plants of Asplenium marinum,
which does not occur in many sites this far south on the east coast. As we left Craster for
oe dinner, Adrian Dyer lingered for a cup of tea and on the dry-stone wall of the car park
discovered A. ceterach, a plant that is not very common in north-east Britain.

A change of plan on Sunday saw us travelling to Bellingham to seek out Asplenium
trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis (A. csikii), recently discovered by Jennifer Ide. Hareshaw
Burn (35/8485) turned out to be one of those rare fascinating ferny habitats where turn by
turn the list of species grows in size and delightfulness. We started by observing Asplenium
trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens on buildings and walls as we approached the burn. Then
we saw Dryopteris filix-mas, D. dilatata and D. affinis subsp. borreri. Athyrium filix-
femina, bracken and Equisetum arvense were added and then very large plants of
E. sylvaticum. Polypodium vulgare was spotted on the oaks and then Asplenium
scolopendrium, Blechnum spicant and Polystichum aculeatum. 1 had only ever seen these
growing so close together in Selborne before. Speculation that we might see Phegopteris
connectilis soon proved correct. At the next bend, although most of us had walked past
them, sharp-eyed Alison spotted Gymnocarpium dryopteris and Oreopteris limbosperma
and was able to point them out on the way back.

At the head of the gorge near a steep waterfall, Hareshaw Linn (35/841853), on iron-rich
sandstone cliffs we found Cystopteris fragilis and many plants of Asplenium trichomanes
subsp. pachyrachis. Unfortunately, many of us had to beat a hasty retreat to pick up train
from Alnwick Station, though we still had time on returning to the cars to drop the odd
pteridologist into the stream to collect a few spleenwort fronds in the cause of science and
to be treated to tea and cakes by Mary Gibby.

We are grateful to Rob for organising a great weekend.

228

FOREST OF DEAN, GLOUCESTERSHIRE - 19-20 August Nick Hards

On Saturday 19th August, 18 members and friends gathered in the car park at the Wyndham
Arms, Clearwell, where the first task was to collect the orders for lunch. We were also
given an early taste of what turned out to be a meeting of surprises when Jonathan Crowe
announced that he had found ‘pachyrachis’ (we subsequently decided that we should
probably be using the name Asplenium csikii) in Clearwell the previous evening. This
particularly pleased Mark and Clare Kitchen, who are the Vice-County Recorders and
previously only knew of one site in the county.

Our first site was the old railway line and quarries between Upper Soudley and Ruspidge. I
had collected many Carboniferous fossil plants in this area, but that was over 30 years ago.
What I did know was that there were plenty of modern ferns to be seen. Of these, the
Cystopteris fragilis, which is uncommon in this area, was perhaps the best find, and the
Polypodium the most puzzling. At the time it seemed likely that this was P. cambricum
because of the shape of the teeth on the fronds, and because they were such young fronds.
Mark was going to return and check when the spores are ripe. However, after the meeting
ended I noticed other plants of undoubted P. interjectum, some of the fronds of which were
similarly toothed and all of which were equally immature. I also checked my own plants
when I returned home, and found that the P. cambricum, even in late August, was still only
just unfurling, while both my P. vulgare and P. interjectum were producing a lot of toothed
and lobed fronds this year. My view is that this will turn out to be P. interjectum.

The fossil hunt in the large quarry just south of Ruspidge was, frankly, disappointing. We
only found a few fragments of some clubmosses. The spoil heaps by the road were better,
although I annoyed a lot of ants when I turned over an impressive lump of Sigillaria (the
bark of a particularly large clubmoss). We largely followed the road back to Upper Soudley,
detouring into a couple of small freemines where the spoil heaps were very overgrown, and
stopping to admire an old bell pit which would have been a primitive iron-ore mine. The
Forest of Dean is littered with small mines because of an ancient practice whereby a man
born locally and who has worked in a mine for a year and a day can apply to the Gaveller at
Coleford to start his own mine.

After an excellent lunch in the White Horse, Upper Soudley (which appears to be the old
railway station), we set off for Cannop ponds. We stopped briefly at Blackpool Bridge
(32/653089), partly to admire the many ferns on the railway bridge nearby, and partly to see
the Dryopteris carthusiana which grows abundantly by the stream.

We parked opposite the ponds (32/609109) and then had a debate over the whereabouts of
the Equisetum sylvaticum colony. As it became obvious that there is more than one site, we
decided to walk a short distance by the road before heading up the hill. Not only did we
stumble on a brilliant site with three horsetails including E. sylvaticum, we also found large
and abundant plants of Oreopteris limbosperma, which was supposed to be one of the
attractions of climbing the hill! The route up to the old quarry is complicated, and on the
way I spotted a plant of Asplenium adiantum-nigrum growing, somewhat untypically, on
the ground near another recently disused freemine.

At the top I was somewhat concerned to discover that the large quarry is no longer disused
and the paths have moved. However, we found the old tramway and made our way down
Bix Slade, with some rather brief forays into the undergrowth. Not surprisingly these did
not yield any trace of the Gymnocarpium dryopteris for which there are some old and rather
vague records (it is still known further north, in Wimberry Slade). However, the ve
luxuriant common ferns were much admired, the record being a frond of Dryopteris affinis
subsp. affinis over six feet long!

229

After a very strenuous day some of the party were dead on their feet but several of us
visited Jonathan’s new site for Asplenium trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis (A. csikii)
(32/578081). It was both abundant and (for such a small fern) luxuriant, and very
conveniently chose to grow next to some A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens just to
illustrate the differences. Curiously, at all the sites I know, the rock on which it grows has a
significant iron content.

The next day we met up at Symonds Yat (32/564157) (the small car park, not the touristy
one), my original intention being to march the party all the way to Biblins Rocks to see the
A. trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis. However, I was assured that we could find it on the
Gloucestershire side of the river. Much of the rock here is neutral to slightly alkaline, and
the A. scolopendrium is particularly large and impressive on the alkaline bits (the Pteridium
aquilinum is larger, but less impressive, on the neutral to acid bits!). Mark Kitchen was the
first to spot some Asplenium adiantum-nigrum on the way down. I was surprised to find
some Gymnocarpium robertianum, which confirmed the rediscovery of an old record a few
years earlier. ;

We searched the heavily wooded cliffs near the suspension bridge (32/553143) and
eventually found that the A. trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis extends over a considerable
distance although it is never common. The walk back up the hill seemed twice as far and
half the party discovered a short cut back to the cars, while the others waited for them to
catch up. Eventually we were reunited and headed to Staunton for a very welcome lunch.

photo: N.J. Hards

Forest of Dean.
tek Dixon, Peter Hindle, Eleanor Hards, Marti Martin,
Matthews, Pat Acock, Mark Kitchen, Keith Holly, Jonathan Crowe,
Doreen Holly, Andy Martin, Christine Mullins.

Clare Kitchen, Ivor Price, De
Howard & Tina

230

The afternoon visit was to Cadora Wood in the Wye Valley. This was ancient woodland
until about 30 years ago, when much of it was felled and replanted with conifers. It was
acquired in 1999 by the Woodland Trust, who are intending to try and restore it. I had
arranged to check out what remained of the original rich fern flora. Unfortunately it is a
long hard walk up Coxbury Lane from Redbrook (32/537095), so some of the party opted
to relax by the river and others only got as far as Causeway Grove, which is intact ancient
woodland. Curiously, those of us who reached Cadora Wood (entrance at 32/537086)
found more different ferns, as there was a good patch of Dryopteris carthusiana by the

ath. Under the worst of the coniferous plantings there were no ferns, but there is plenty of
evidence of what it all used to be like and some of the plants had enormous woody stocks

and must be a considerable age. There were also masses of young sporelings of several
different species, which bodes well for the future. We left Mark and Clare Kitchen still
searching the wood, while most of the rest of us sampled the tea and cakes at the tea-room
after bidding farewell to Marti and Andy Martin, who had a long drive home after their first
BPS field trip.

Pteridophytes recorded during Forest of Dean Meeting

> a 2
pean ae i A:
Oo 56|9 a = a s
a oi 5 o oy 4 z gS
eh/23| 2/8] 2] 2
Z5|maa|/o/ 0] a]
Equisetum arvense X
E. fluviatile
E. sylvaticum X
Polypodium interjectum X X X X
Pteridium aquilinum X X X X X
Oreopteris limbosperma Xx
Asplenium adiantum-nigrum Xx X
A. ceterach Xx Xx x
A. ruta-muraria X Xx X X
A. scolopendrium x X X X X X
A. trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis x Xx
A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens Xx X X X X
Athyrium filix-femina Xx X X X Xx
Gymnocarpium robertianum X
Cystopteris fragilis X
Polystichum aculeatum Xx Xx
P. setiferum X X X
Dryopteris affinis agg. Xx
D. affinis subsp. affinis x x
D. affinis subsp. borreri x X x
D. carthusiana x x x |
D. dilatata eed 1 x ek
D. filix-mas x X x X x Pe
Blechnum spicant X x X x | x |

LECTURE MEETINGS AND DAY VISITS 2000

MINI-SYMPOSIUM ON XEROPHYTIC F ERNS, NHM, LONDON - 15 January
Martin Rickard

Once again our hard working Meetings Subcommittee had come up with a successful day’s
programme. I am sure that the two dozen members who attended all found this a very
enjoyable and informative meeting.

we may be able to get something organised in a few years time once the dust from the New
Zealand trip has settled. Chile might be more expensive but maybe ...!

Before lunch Alison Paul described the principal xerophytic ferns from Europe. All are in
the Adiantaceae, a point that had escaped my notice. I had earlier been surprised when
Sylvia had described the three adiantums from Chile as xerophytes but here was Alison
reinforcing the link! In Europe we have Notholaena marantae, Cosentinia vellea and seven

margin of the leaf. Whilst there are differences in gross morphology, the species are best
determined by examining the pseudoindusium and indument with a hand lens. In

(i.e. undivided), In C. acrostica it is irregularly lobed with a fimbriate margin. In C. tinaet it
is fringed and there are short red glandular hairs on the underside of the frond, whereas

If this is not enough, Alison also pointed out that many of the species hybridise with one
another...! A practical identification session followed for those who wished to look at
examples of these species with the aid of a microscope and various keys that Alison had
abba ac There was also an Opportunity to view and admire a wide range of potted
cheilanthoid ferns grown and displayed by Clive Brotherton.

232

Our first speaker after lunch was Bob Chinnock, an international pteridological celebrity,
who is also currently the ABLO (Australian Botanical Liaison Officer) based at Kew. I say
celebrity because anyone who has co-written a book on New Zealand ferns is a star in my
book! The book in question being Ferns and Fern Allies of New Zealand by Heath and
Chinnock published in 1974. As the title ABLO suggests, Bob is now permanently based in
Australia where he has recently made a very significant contribution to the Flora of
Australia, Volume 48, Ferns, Gymnosperms and Allied Groups (1998). Plates drawn for
this major work were used to illustrate his talk. Bob followed on the theme started by
Sylvia in the morning by running through the xerophytic ferns of Australia — except that he
virtually ignored Cheilanthes! Using a definition of xerophyte similar to Sylvia’s, Bob
cartes the following genera as being at least partly xerophytic in Australia: /soetes — one
es grows on top of Ayers Rock!, Pleurosorus, Cheilanthes, Paraceterach, Marsilea,
Sehieiueak Adiantum, Pteris, Psilotum, Nephrolepis, Doodia, Lindsaea, Dicranopteris,
Lycop ag chizaea, Actiniopteris, siege dormer Lygodium, Platyzoma, Asplenium,
Microsorum, Drynaria and even Hymenophyllum! A thought-provoking list with many
genera so x cneteadate in character from oti average pteridologist’s idea of a xerophytic fern.

The day was wound up by an informal session where Clive Brotherton answered questions
on the cultivation of xerophytic ferns. Clive, and his wife Doreen, are stalwarts of the
Midlands Regional Group but they rarely have time to participate in the more distant
national meetings (including those in London). Within the West Midlands, however,
Clive’s skill in cultivating these ferns is almost legendary. He grows a very wide range of
xerophytic ferns, mostly in his greenhouse but five or six species do well in his garden
which is almost entirely laid down to gravel! I oe to chair this session but such was
the interest from the floor that I was largely superfluous. The questions kept coming thick
and fast and Clive’s answers were always carefully cinanlate Topics covered included
compost, watering, temperature, pests, compost sterilisation, spore cleaning and

greenhouse. The liveliness of this session was adequate proof of the suitability of this
format when we are fortunate enough to have a true expert in the hot seat. We all went
away with a much better idea of what we were doing wrong!

In conclusion, I would like to record my thanks to all the participants and particularly to
Graham Ackers, who conceived the idea for the meeting and coerced all the contributors
into taking part. He was ably supported by the staff at the Museum, in this instance Alison
Paul and Mary Gibby. Our sincere thanks to all three of you.

SPRING INDOOR MEETING, CHELSEA PHYSIC GARDEN, LONDON -—
25 March Graham Ackers
This was not entirely an ‘indoor’ meeting, because the Chelsea Physic Garden venue
provided the opportunity for bouts of fresh air between proceedings. Indeed, the garden was
looking particularly fine with its spring blooms and blossoms. Dodging the showers, the
sunny spells allowed us to see the colourful winter Woodland Garden, the Garden’s bees
visiting marsh marigold (Caltha palustris) flowers in the pond, masses of white bergenias,
the impressively statuesque self-seeding Echium pininana from the Canary Islands, the
foxglove tree (Paulownia tomentosa) in flower, and the Judas tree (Cercis siliquastrum)
about to flower. The New Zealand theme of this meeting was ‘supported’ by seeing the
collection of New Zealand medicinal plants, including Phormium sp. and a fuchsia tree
(Fuchsia excorticata).

The meeting started with a series of illustrated talks presented by some of those who
attended the Society’s New Zealand excursion in February. Alastair Wardlaw’s introduction
set the scene by showing the route taken by the party. Alastair went on to describe the

233

context of the excursion in terms of the size and population of New Zealand, its geology,
geographical location, and extent of its fern flora. The first full three days (Saturday to
Monday) of the excursion itself were then described, from the searing heat and hot rocks
ferns of Christchurch’s Port Hills area, to the drenching rain in Arthur’s Pass, and ending in
the wonderful rainforest habitats of the Hokitika area in the west of South Island.

Sylvia Martinelli, assisted by Alan Ogden, then went on to present an account of the next
four days. Tuesday saw the party at Fox Glacier, doing some ‘touristy’ things, but
significantly exploring the amazingly ferny rainforest along the Minnehaha track. On
ednesday the party returned north, passing back through Hokitika, exploring some coastal
fern locations en route, and terminating at Westport. Thursday’s destination was Nelson,
where a couple of fascinating fern gardens were visited, together with a native fern nursery.
That evening, excursion members were the guests of the Nelson Fern Society. Friday saw
the party travelling to Blenheim, en route visiting a ferny nature reserve at Pelorus Bridge.

Paul Ripley and Patrick Acock together covered the next ‘leg’. On the Saturday the party
crossed Cook Strait to North Island, and on arrival were accompanied by Patrick Brownsey
to explore a woody waterworks reserve 40km north of Wellington. The party stayed in
Wellington that night, then moved on to Okahune in the Tongariro National Park, where
mountain flora was observed along various tracks and alpine meadows. On Monday the
route taken was from Ohakune to Rotorua, famous for its hot springs and thermal lakes. On
Tuesday morning, the Waimangu thermal region was visited, before the party moved off to
Auckland.

The final ‘leg’ was described by Graham Ackers. On Wednesday morning, the Auckland
domain was visited to see the Auckland Museum’s collection of antique New Zealand fern
books, the fernery and a performance of Maori culture and song. Around lunchtime the
party set off for Whangarei, where the wooded hill site of Mount Parahaki was explored.
All of the ferny activity on Thursday was spent in the company of Barbara Parris at the
wonderful Waipoua Forest, with its untouched kauri trees and associated vegetation. By
Friday, the party had arrived at the final destination of Kerikeri, where the Kerikeri
Walkway was explored for ferns. In the afternoon, a local native plant and fern nursery and
Barbara Parris’ house were visited. Excursion members dispersed on the Saturday.

The overall impression gleaned from these presentations was of a highly successful and
enjoyable trip, organised superbly by Jennifer Ide. A much fuller account of this excursion
appears elsewhere in this Bulletin.

Next on the agenda was a short presentation from Mary Gibby on the history of the Chelsea
Physic Garden. Naturally, the history of any institution is an amalgamation of the
personalities who have helped to create it. The Garden was conceived by the Society of
Apothecaries in 1673. After some difficult early years, the potential value of the gardens
was emphasised by a visit from the then well known Professor of Botany at Leiden
University, Paul Hermann. However, the most influential personality was Sir Hans Sloane,
who bought the Manor of Chelsea in 1712, and ten years later leased the grounds to the
Apothecaries in perpetuity, providing it was always used as a Physic (or now a Botanic)
garden. Sloane was also instrumental in securing the appointment of Philip Miller as

During that time, Linnaeus visited the gardens. In 1772, Sir Joseph Banks brought back
some slabs of black lava from Iceland, and presented them to the gardens to construct what
is thought to be the earliest rock garden in the country. This is now a listed structure,
currently undergoing renovation. Others associated with the gardens were William Curtis
(Publisher of the famous Botanical Magazine), Nathaniel Wad (of Wardian case fame),
and Thomas Moore (author of several Victorian fern books).

234

In present times, the main use of the garden remains botanical, and this is supported by the
order beds and many other fine features. Currently there is significant fern interest, and the
four main fern collections were visited. Within the unheated fern hOuse is the collection of
Macaronesian ferns. Also within the fern house is a famous Wardian case, containing the
seemingly rampant Trichomanes speciosum and a couple of specimens of Leptopteris
superba — the Prince of Wales Feathers fern (seen during the New Zealand excursion in its
native rainforest habitat). Just outside the fern house is Mary Gibby’ Dryopteris collection,
with some impressive (and rare) species and hybrids from Macaronesia, Europe an
elsewhere. Naturally, this collection will become more attractive as the new season’s fronds
unfurl. Johannes Vogel has a large Asplenium collection to support his research activities.
This is located next to the main buildings, as is the recently acquired collection of
Doryopteris. Not being hardy, these ferns are housed in the Natura] History Museum’s
glasshouse. The collection is being built up by Jovita Cislinski-Yesilyurt, a research student
from Brazil, who is preparing a thesis on the genus. They are a particularly attractive group
of plants, which horticulturally should be treated as ‘semi-xeroPhytic’ There remain a
number of scientific puzzles to unravel, principally the delineation Of the genus, its species,
and their problematical hybrids. One point of particular interest was that the morphology of
sporelings may, in some cases, prove more helpful for species s¢paration than the fully
own sporophytes. Thanks are due to Jovita and the other Collection owners for
interpreting their collections for us.

This garden session merged with the lunch hour, after which the Society held its Annual
General Meeting. Minutes of the AGM appear elsewhere in this issue, however, I would
make the personal observation that recent AGMs have bee" both enjoyable and
informative, with the various reports being presented briefly and professionally. In no way
are they the ordeal that some might imagine and I would encourage as many meMbers as
possible to attend in future years!

After the AGM, Graham Ackers ran a short forum for new members to help explain the
workings of the Society and how to get the most out of it.

Throughout the meeting, book sales were (as usual) ably run by St€Ve and Karen Munyard
and similarly, merchandise sales by Mick and Linda Craddock. Gerry Downey kindly
volunteered to run the plant sales (which netted a welcome £43). To support the theme of
the meeting, Martin Rickard brought along some of his own antique New Zealand books,
including superb examples of pressed fern books with their woOden bindings by Anton
Seuffert and Eric Craig. We also had a preview of Martin’s new book, The Plantfinder’s
Guide to Hardy Ferns, due for publication the following month,

The meeting closed an hour or so after the AGM, members having indulged in tea and
cakes and (hopefully!) enjoyable social discourse.

ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW, RICHMOND, SURREY — 20 May

Pat Acock
Twenty-five members were greeted by Julie, a member of the Kew Staff, and given a badge
to wear which entitled those who remembered to a cup of coffee or tea,

We set off for the outside fern borders at the end of the Order BedS. Here we were able to
acquaint some of the newer members with a few of the more cOMmon British ferns and
varieties as well as some of the more commonly planted foreign hardy plants. Ferns of note
included Osmunda regalis, Onoclea sensibilis, Polypodium x Shiyasiae, Polystichum
aculeatum and Phegopteris connectilis. Ophioglossum vulgatum Was Spotted in a tight
clump in one of the beds, a good chance to show this species to th0se not so familiar with
it. We moved on through the Rockery where we observed a few reMnants of the fern flora

235

of an earlier age, a few tasselled lady ferns and hart’s tongues as well as a small colony of
Cystopteris fragilis. At the Alpine House we saw a few hardy ferns inside before moving
around the sides and back where a few favourites lie. These included Polypodium scouleri,
Adiantum pedatum, Cystopteris dickieana and Asplenium ruta-muraria.

Before we broke for lunch we went into the Princess of Wales Conservatory and looked at
the Adiantum species and cultivars downstairs. On going into the more tropical sections we
admired the various ferns and tried to come to grips with the families we had met in our
different experiences. The section with the rock wall is still predominantly empty and we
look forward to the time when it is restored to its former glory.

Over lunch we got to know some of the newer members and then we reassembled at the
Filmy Fern House. With some of the party recently back from New Zealand, the house took
on a new dimension and we were able to look out for some of the plants we had admired on
our travels. Care will need to be exercised in the management of this house as many of its
bygone treasures have already gone and others look as though they will be soon inundated
by more weedy growth.

Outside, at the back of the Filmy Fern House, we looked at the rearranged ferns donated at
the time of the Society’s centenary. The plants that are left are growing reasonably well.
Some members took the opportunity to leave at this point but a few hardy ones went in
search of a few more ferns in the Palm House. We then called in at the bookshop before
going our separate ways.

RHS GARDENS, WISLEY, SURREY - 3 June Pat Acock

On a fine spring day fifteen members met Mike Grant, one of the Wisley botanists who has
a special interest in ferns. After an initial talk by Mike we set off for the ferny areas below
the rockery, stopping off on the way to admire a few Polystichum cultivars, P. andersonii
and Pseudophegopteris levingei.

In the lightly wooded lower area the ferns were well laid out and we were able to show our
newer members some of the British native plants and contrast these with foreign ferns and
British varieties. Growing in the water we were able to see a number of majestic Osmunda
regalis varieties as well as O. cinnamomea.

Ascending the Rockery we were shown another area set out mainly with native ferns but
also with a few hardy foreign favourites. Higher up the Rockery one group discovered a
few remnants of Pseudophegopteris levingei which may still have its revenge and
recolonise its former haunt. A little further along we discovered Asplenium trichomanes
and A. ceterach growing in a rock wall. In the wall supporting the Alpine House bank we
observed a few more ferns including Cyrtomium fortunei. In the Alpine House there were
only four ferns including the delicate little Pteris gallinipes, Cheilanthes maderensis and
Dryopteris affinis ‘Crispa Gracilis’; the rest of the alpines and the splendid way they were
displayed made up for that.

Outside the large greenhouses we met for the afternoon session and Mike led us inside to
see the huge platyceriums. One plants of Platycerium bifurcatum is in excess of 100 years
old, having come from the garden’s previous home at Chiswick. Discussion followed on
the status of a splendid Davallia and Mick Craddock was given a piece to take home to
identify. In the tropical area we admired a few large ferns as well as a jade plant in glorious
bloom. Moving into the Singapore Airlines Orchid Display area we of course admired the
adiantums and we were shown a fine specimen of Adiantum trapeziforme given to the
Prince of Wales. Mike informed us that the donor had visited the house only recently and
had been surprised to see it still in its original pot, a hollowed out tree-fern trunk.

236

Outside the Stanley Smith Orchid House is a fern border where there was much discussion
on a few varieties as to whether they were monstrosities or good cultivars and some
disagreement about the identity of one or two of the hardy species in this border. Moving
on to Battlestone Hill we had to admire the Dicksonia antarctica, the older, more
established plants had many luxuriant fronds.

We were pleased to meet two of our newer members, Andy and Marti Martin, and trust that
they enjoyed the day and will attend some of our other meetings. Thanks are due to Mike
Grant who once again gave up a summer Saturday and was not only generous with his time
and patience but nearly disappeared into the pond trying to reach a good piece of Davallia
for Mick to identify.

MIDLANDS FERN SHOW, UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK, COVENTRY -

15 July A.R. Busby
Sixteen members attended the Midlands Fern Show held at the University of Warwick's
Science Education Department at Westwood. It was very gratifying to see Steve and Karen
Munyard there with a selection of books from the BPS Booksales. Another feature of the
meeting was a large selection of ground grown ferns for sale kindly donated by Mrs Sue
Pierce-Seary

During the morning, members visited my garden in Kirby Corner Road and much
discussion took place concerning my biggest garden problem, namely the control of
bindweed, or rather my lack of control of this pernicious weed. In the afternoon Dr Alan
Ogden gave us an illustrated talk on his recent visit to Ecuador. His slides featured many,
largely unnamed, cloud forest ferns.

The main event of the day of course was the competitive fern classes. Regrettably, Mrs Rita
Coughlin was unable to attend to judge the ferns so this heavy burden fell upon me.

Class 1 — One Pot Fern (any kind or variety)

1st L. Kirkham, 2nd R.J. Smith, 3rd J. Whysall (11 entries)
Class 2 — Three Pot Ferns (any kind or variety)

1st L. Kirkham, 2nd R.J. Smith, 3rd J. Whysall (5 entries)
Class 3— One Pot Equisetum (any kind or variety)

1st P.J. Acock, 2nd P.J. Acock, 3rd P.J. Acock (5 entries)
Class 4— One Pot Aquatic Fern (Azolla, Salvinia or Marsilea only) (no entries)
The general condition of the exhibits was excellent although a number of plants displayed
obvious damage by scorching and some exhibits, though quite adequately cultivated, were
poorly presented. There was a tie between Lawrence Kirkham and Patrick Acock for the
most points awarded, so the J.W. Dyce Trophy will be shared by them this year.
I feel that it is time to review how the classes are formulated, therefore I plan to revise the
classes for next year to distinguish between indoor and hardy ferns.
Although sixteen is a slight improvement on attendance from last year, it is still very
disappointing. Perhaps some members are under the illusion that to attend the meeting you
are obliged to exhibit ferns. Nothing could be farther from the truth. We welcome all
members at this meeting. My thanks to all those members who did kindly support this
meeting, especially those who travelled long distances.

PHOTOGRAPHIC WORKSHOP - 16-17 September
This meeting unfortunately had to be cancelled owing to lack of interest.

237

REGIONAL MEETINGS 2000

LEEDS & DISTRICT Barry Wright

Brockadale, Nr Wentbridge, N. Yorkshire — 24 June (Leaders: Ron & Pat Cole)

Our first outing of the year was to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve at
Brockadale. The reserve comprises woodland and pasture set in a deep valley of the River
Went on Magnesian Limestone. We met in the new car park at 44/508175. From there we
set off down into the valley and the wooded area where we came across Dryopteris filix-
mas, with some of the great many Asplenium scolopendrium plants and the more elusive
Polypodium vulgare. There were relatively few Dryopteris dilatata. Ron then led us to an
area where he assured us we would find Ophioglossum vulgatum and possibly Botrychium
lunaria. After much effort we found the former at 44/50691702. Also in this area were a
few Dryopteris affinis subsp. borreri.

The route to the pub took us past many more luxuriant stands of scollies. We chalked up
some Equisetum arvense under the Al bridge. There were some Asplenium ruta-muraria
on the limestone rocks along the way at 44/49751717. After a good lunch we set off back
the same way we had come for part of the route, but deviated to take in the delights of
Pteridium aquilinum. But we did find one oddity in a single specimen of Dryopteris
carthusiana, staying away from the calcareous substrate by growing on a rotten tree stump
sr 44/50191729. There was also the treat of some Athyrium filix-femina growing down near
the river.

All in all a good first outing especially for the wonderful scollies and the hunt for the
Ophioglossum vulgatum. Thanks to Ron and Pat, our local guides,

Grass Wood and Bolton Abbey Woods, Wharfedale, N. Yorkshire - 15 July
(Leader: Barry Wright)

The day began at another Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserve — Grass Wood near Grassington
at 34/983653. We were met by Martin Hanson, who is doing a methodical botanical survey
of the wood, and Ellis Tinsley, the warden for the day. Ellis guided us through the myriad
paths to the starting point for our study. There was the expected mix of calcicolous species
— Asplenium scolopendrium, A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens and Cystopteris fragilis
(34/99206527) along with the other common species such as Dryopteris filix-mas an
D. dilatata. But, more unusually, we came across Athyrium filix-femina and, on the leaf
mould humus, Oreopteris limbosperma (notably at 34/98896547). There were also a very
few specimens of what seemed to be young Dryopteris affinis subsp. affinis or subsp.
borreri. These were small, but were curious; they had the dark spot at the pinna-rachis
junction, but they were not typical of a D. affinis. We also came across one plant of
Blechnum spicant (34/98426550) and the ubiquitous Preridium aquilinum.

a aculeatum. This general mixing continued with Athyrium _filix-femina,
reopteris limbosperma, Cystopteris fragilis, Polypodium vulgare and Blechnum spicant.

“ the Bolton Abbey end we joined the ‘Carriage Walk’ back to the car park. It was
surprising that we found all of the species we had seen on the upper path earlier plus

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Equisetum arvense, Pteridium aquilinum and Gymnocarpium dryopteris. At one spot the
oak fern grew side-by-side with Phegopteris connectilis up a steep bank. There were some
very large — 1.5m plus — plants of Athyrium filix-femina near to the Strid, so called because
the whole of the River Wharfe is funnelled through a deep limestone gorge which you can
stride over, although it is true that many have tried and some have died. Not recommended!

Truly a wonderful place to see a wide variety of species from the comfort of your carriage!

Dentdale, Cumbria — 12 August (Leader: Alan Meakin)

Alan was persuaded to re-do a meeting he did for the North West group the previous year.
We met at Rottenbutts Wood at 34/673888 near Dent Village.

On the road to the wood we came across both Equisetum arvense and E. fluviatile growing
in the verge. In the wood there was the usual mix of common species: male fern
(Dryopteris filix-mas), Athyrium filix-femina and Dryopteris dilatata. But Alan was quite
correct when he said there were extensive drifts of Gymnocarpium dryopteris and
Phegopteris connectilis in the wood. Other species of note were Dryopteris affinis
morphotype insolens, Pteridium aquilinum, Oreopteris limbosperma, and Polypodium
vulgare growing epiphytically on a tree.

After a pleasant lunch in Dent, where we picked up a late arrival, Ken Trewren, we drove
up to Stone Rigg at 34/683864 for a trek across the fields to Coombe Scar at 34/677875.
This was steep hillside with scree and cliffs above. Of particular note were two affinis’s
growing side-by-side in the lower scree. These Dryopteris affinis subspp. affinis and
cambrensis were clearly distinguishable from a distance. The former seemed to be more
tolerant of the exposure on the scree as it was more extensive and was further away from
the shading influence of the few rowan trees in the area.

The fitter members scrambled up the slope to the foot of the cliffs for a general explore and
eventually turned up Asplenium trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens, A. viride, Cryptogramma
crispa, Cystopteris fragilis and Asplenium adiantum-nigrum. On the way back Ken found a
bonus in a small stream. There were a few delicate cones of Selaginella selaginoides tucked
away almost out of sight except to a well trained pteridologist.

As we were so fit we decided to forego the scramble up Flinter Gill, opting instead for the
wonderful hospitality of Alan and Freda at their home in Dent. This included a tour of their
fern-filled garden. Thanks to Alan and Freda for a wonderful day.

Rossmoor, Allerthorpe Common, Londesborough Cross, East Yorkshire -
2 September (Leaders: Sylvia Medd & Barry Wright)

The last outing of the season was the ‘easy’ meeting, which was combined with our
horticultural event, the visit to Sylvia’s garden in Shiptonthorpe and our fund-raising bring-
and-buy sale.

The day began with a trip to a wood on a farm recently bought by Mr J. Rotherham. The

W
colleagues in ADAS, a woodlands consultant. An earlier recce had suggested it might have
potential. It certainly had. The most abundant species was Dryopteris dilatata, with D. filix-
mas coming second. There were few plants of D. affinis, probably subsp. cambrensis but
e plants were immature. Pteridium aquilinum was uncommon as was Athyrium filix-
femina. But, the ‘turn up for the books’ was Dryopteris carthusiana. There were a few
small, but easily recognisable plants at 44/73574384. We tried hard to make some of the
D. dilatata into D. x deweveri but without convincing success.

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Lunch at the pub was followed by a somewhat disappointing visit to a Yorkshire Wildlife
Trust reserve at Allerthorpe Common. There were certainly plenty of ‘real’ ferns — i.e. ferns
other than Pteridium aquilinum — in there, but apart from some better specimens of
Dryopteris carthusiana it was nearly all the same species — D. dilatata. When you’ ve seen
one D. dilatata, you’ve seen ’em all. We spent a happy little hour trying to spot the non-
dilatatas. We did find a few, notably D. affinis subsp. affinis and a few more
D. carthusiana.

But the highlight was a trip round Sylvia’s garden. Her one acre garden is open to the
public on several occasions each year under various charity opening schemes. It is crammed
full of interesting plants including some which don’t have spores. But those with spores are
maturing well in the increasing number of fern beds and the newly erected shade-house. I
don’t know if her husband, John, realises that this is just the No. 1 shade-house!

Thanks to Linda Pickering and Sylvia for providing tea and sticky buns before our bring-
and-buy sale, thus topping-off another good season of meetings for our group.

Unfortunately this year was tainted by the sad news of the death of Eric Baker and, two
days before our AGM, the death of one of our mainstay members, Betsy Kohler, in a tragic
boating accident. Our sympathies go to their respective families.

SOUTH-EAST

The Barbican, London - 5 March Paul Ripley

Ten members and friends attended the first South-East meeting of the Millennium, and
were treated to a fascinating and quite unexpected series of delights in a part of the world
not normally noted for its flora.

The Barbican development in the City of London includes 4,500 of the most expensive flats
in Britain, in the highest residential building in London, in addition to leisure and office
facilities. Between the storage and rehearsal areas for the Royal Shakespeare Company and
the London Symphony Orchestra lies a site, awkward in area and layout, which has been
turned into a series of gardens. Administered by the City, but maintained by the Parks
Department, it is embarrassingly expensive to run (heating alone costs £400,000 per
annum), serves as a venue for corporate hospitality and is only sporadically open to the
public. Operating in a symbiotic relationship, Stefan Czeladzinski maintains the National
Collection of Selaginella here, and is largely responsible for the number of unusual and
exotic ferns scattered throughout the garden.

Mention should be made of the rock garden, where fine clumps of Asplenium marinum (of
Chinese origin) flourished, but the bulk of the garden is covered by glass. It is am
uncompromising environment, consisting of shallow and poorly drained clay beds, with a
rather dry atmosphere and variable light levels. It also has a very high roof, which perhaps
accounts for the heating bill but also allows some mature and handsome specimens of
Dicksonia antarctica to be accommodated. Ferns of particular interest were the several very
large Asplenium nidus, Tectaria Spp., Actiniopteris and a number of Phymatosorus
(Microsorum) (e.g. P. scandens) and Elaphoglossum species. Cyrtomium falcatum and
adiantums grew everywhere almost as weeds.

The highlight of course was Stefan’s Selaginella collection. A few were planted in the
beds, but most were housed in pots permanently covered by polythene flasks. Stefan has
clearly become an authority on growing this large (about 750 species) and difficult group,
and his knowledge was enormously impressive. He had prepared a handout summarising
the characters of the group and illustrating some of the interest and diversity. All of

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Stefan’s plants were well grown, receiving great care, and many were handsome and
beautiful. S. erythropus, with its strong red colour, would be an award-winning plant in
many a display. Many are hardy (given protection from drought) and deserve to be better
known and more widely grown.

Our day next included a trip to the Columbia Road flower street market, where an
extraordinary selection of plants, some very good value, were being sold on either side of
an undistinguished East London street. Steve Munyard spotted Dicksonia squarrosa among
the more usual D. antarctica. Most of us finished the day with a late lunch at a convenient
Wetherspoon pub, and all were most grateful to Stefan for sharing his knowledge and
providing some quite unexpected treats.

Walliswood, Surrey — 24 June Pat Acock
Graham Ackers was our host for the day and a splendid host he turned out to be. We could
have used a few more members but this did not detract from the proceedings. Graham had
produced a collection of papers to help us during the day which was to be in three parts.

Firstly we followed the footpath opposite the car park at 51/119381 through a wood
towards the local church. In the wood a number of small rivers cut into the sandy soil and
joined one another, eventually making two deeper valleys. We thought at first that we were
only going to see the commonest three ferns typical of these nutrient poor soils: Dryopteris
dilatata, D. filix-mas and Pteridium aquilinum. However, on searching deeper in the woods
we were able to add Dryopteris carthusiana, D. affinis subspp. affinis and borreri,
Asplenium scolopendrium and Athyrium filix-femina. The church had been repointed
recently and did not host any ferns on its walls, although just beyond it we found
Polypodium vulgare. We returned along another deep cut valley that, for no obvious reason,
proved considerably more barren of ferns.

It was at this point of the day that our host bought us a round of drinks and we enjoyed
lunch in the 487-year-old inn. Afterwards we drove just half a mile or so to Wallis Wood
Nature Reserve at 51/121388 where Graham introduced us to Sue Cooper, the Warden. Sue
explained that this oak/hazel coppiced woodland was becoming increasingly rare in the
South-east and the Surrey Wildlife Trust had been grateful for having the opportunity to
acquire it. We were to survey it for her and Graham carefully plotted our finds on the
detailed maps he had issued us with earlier and later produced a report with management
recommendations.

We quickly re-established the presence of Dryopteris carthusiana. Sue had taken us to see
Blechnum spicant and mentioned that one of the plants the wood was reported to have in it
was the violet helleborine Epipactis purpurata, which she hoped to find. Hardly had the
words left her mouth when Peter Clare spotted a helleborine within a yard of us. I think we
should go back to confirm the species once it is mature. Sue also told us that the wood had
many characters of ancient woodland: beside the hornbeams there were wild plums and
pears and also a few wild service trees. We found all the ferns seen in the morning as well
as a fine colony of a crisped form of Pteridium aquilinum and a few very large specimens
of Dryopteris carthusiana.

The third strand of the day was the visit to Graham and Lesley’s house to see their ferns, or
was it for the cream tea — both were equally fine. Graham has an exquisite collection of
ferns raised from spores and bulbils as well as ones sought out from nurserymen. Many of

em are plants that he has come to love from his many fern forays around the world. He
has a large shaded border as well as other areas of the garden, ponds and stream bank
covered in hardy ferns. Inside his greenhouses, which he keeps just frost free, he keeps the
more tender Oceanic ferns, while those that need a little more heat fill the conservatory.

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Later, the remaining pteridologists had to be torn away from Graham’s study where he
keeps his wonderful collection of fern books.

I would like to thank Graham for the diligent way he had planned a day involving very little
travelling but that had three very different aspects to it, and Lesley for tolerating our
lingering on into the evening.

Brockenhurst, New Forest, Hampshire - 2 September Paul Ripley

Six members of the BPS South East group joined about 15 members of the Hampshire and
Isle of Wight Natural History Group for a joint meeting organised by Catherine Chatters.
Two people were actually members of both groups.

Roydon Woods (we met at 41/305009) lie just outside the New Forest and comprise
extensive low-lying mixed woodland. The soil is essentially acid but is sufficiently enriched
with bases to permit Polystichum setiferum and Asplenium scolopendrium to grow
commonly. The walk from the car park set the scene, with P. setiferum growing next to
Blechnum spicant. Other species were Athyrium filix-femina, Dryopteris filix-mas,
D. dilatata, Pteridium aquilinum and Polypodium sp.; P. interjectum was the most likely
species, but in lanes near the wood P. interjectum grew close to plants which were probably
P. vulgare. We were taken first to see Dryopteris aemula, unusually growing on a very low
stream-bank, and Osmunda regalis. Further into the wood Dryopteris affinis became much
more common than D. filix-mas, and we saw D. affinis subspp. borreri and affinis.
D. carthusiana was abundant in moister sites, becoming the dominant fern in some areas.
Equisetum telmateia was common and locally abundant, especially near the pond where we
had lunch.

In the afternoon we visited Jo Basil’ s garden. Jo kindly provided us with tea, and we saw
some very well grown ferns including a very handsome Pellaea atropurpurea.

Finally, after a visit to Spinners nursery where among other things North American
Dryopteris spinulosa was for sale (I maintained this was different from D. carthusiana),
Andrew Leonard kindly took us to see the Ophioglossum azoricum site in the car park at
Warwick Slade (41/271065). Although late in the season and difficult to spot, the plants
were quite abundant.

I think we were a little reticent and reluctant to show our own expertise; we had some very
knowledgeable guides and joint meetings like this can only be beneficial.

Sheffield Park, and Rosemary Hibbs’ Garden, Hailsham, East Sussex -
14 October Paul Ripley

the acers and redwoods were magnificent. It is not particularly ferny but the Osmunda
regalis, sporing happily near the waterfalls, were very fine. Matteuccia struthiopteris 1s
naturalised near a stream gully where it grows with Onoclea sensibilis, the latter only

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We made it to Rosemary Hibbs’ home eventually, and were again fascinated by her garden.
Not only is there a wealth of ferny interest, with plants in the most unexpected places, but
Rosemary’s family have a number of memorabilia in the garden, including a working
semaphore railway signal, which had been lit for our visit. We were also fascinated by
Rosemary’s collection of insectivorous plants and were pleased to see evidence of her skill
in fern-raising, especially of adiantums.

After tea we were entertained by slide-shows of visits made by Graham Ackers to
remarkable sites on the Azores, and by other members to North Spain (GEP meeting) and
south-east Australia, finishing with tree-fern artistry by Jennifer Ide. Our grateful thanks are
due to Rosemary and her family for their warm hospitality and for the trouble they had
taken to provide us with such an interesting visit.

EAST ANGLIA

Indoor Meeting, Little Thurlow, Suffolk - 30 January Rosemary Stevenson

The pleasure of having the opportunity to get together with others in the group during “The
Close Season’ for ferns was apparent on the faces of members as they gathered for the now
traditional mid-winter meeting. Once again Mary Hilton kindly welcomed us into her home
and the splendid large room, with log fire blazing, which makes such a perfect setting for
this occasion. Seventeen members and friends attended and were soon volubly exchanging
news or viewing the golden carpet of aconites in Mary’s garden while our speaker for the
day, Patrick Acock, prepared all that he had brought to interest us.

After a brief synopsis of his own long interest in ferns, dating back to 1966, Patrick gave us
an interesting illustrated talk about the history and activities of the GEP (Group of
European Pteridologists). This organisation was founded to provide a forum for amateur
and professional pteridologists to discuss ideas and knowledge about pteridophytes in the
field on a regular basis, visiting different European countries/habitats and giving people the
opportunity to see species they are not familiar with. In 1991 Paul Ripley organised a BPS
field meeting in Brittany. A variety of other pteridological excursions in Europe followed
on under different guises and the GEP was launched in 1995 with a visit to Southern Spain.
Since that successful meeting members have enjoyed trips to various European countries.

Patrick then went on to show slides of the 1999 GEP visit to the Bavarian Alps. Here they
were able to view at one site seven lycopods, including four species of Diphasiastrum, and
Athyrium distentifolium. At another site in a quarry they were pleased to be able to examine
two aspleniums: Asplenium cuneifolium and A. adulterinum, while on a journey high up in
the mountains they were shown a bright green moss growing in caves which the Germans
called ‘luminous moss’. Here too, were Cryptogramma crispa and Cystopteris fragilis and,
on the lower slopes, examples of beech fern. We were also told of their experiences during
a brief excursion over the border into the Czech Republic where they found a bleak
landscape of rocky rubble which, not surprisingly, supported a somewhat sparse variety of
vegetation. The desolation was all the more apparent as, for the first ten miles beyond the
border, every building had been raised to the ground. Despite this unpromising terrain, by
dint of being taken on a whistle-stop tour of seven sites, members were fortunate enough to
see Botrychium matricariifolium and B. lunaria and Asplenium septentrionale, existing
here, it was thought, because they are not attractive to slugs which were obviously a
deterrent to the survival of other plants in this very wet area.

In conclusion, Patrick emphasised the role of the GEP in drawing together people of many
nationalities through their common interest in ferns, and the importance of British members
being involved, rather than taking an insular view and not looking beyond our own shores.

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Our meeting drew to a close with a chance to see (while enjoying Mary’s delicious
refreshments) the many items of ferny interest brought by those present. Reluctantly
members then departed into the dark, cold night but with the feeling that the winter had
somehow been shortened and the new season’s meetings could now be eagerly anticipated.

Bradfield Woods, Suffolk and Sylvia Norton’s Garden, West Wickham,
Cambridgeshire - 11 June Tim Pyner
Eleven members met at Bradfield Woods near Bury St Edmunds (52/934581). These are
ancient woodlands with a rich ground flora and a good variety of shrubs. Our leader was
Angie Steel who lives locally and has an intimate knowledge of the woods. The soil is
boulder clay with some areas of overlying acid gravels. Bracken, Pteridium aquilinum, was
abundant in the acid areas. Male fern, Dryopteris filix-mas, was frequent throughout the
wood. Also of interest was the abundance of both wood avens, Geum urbanum, and water
avens, G. rivale, and a range of hybrids between them. Broad buckler, Dryopteris dilatata,
and narrow buckler fern, D. carthusiana, were abundant in places, particularly in a non-
intervention area to which we were allowed access. Scaly male fern, D. affinis subsp.
borreri, and lady fern, Athyrium filix-femina, occurred as scattered plants throughout the
woods. Other plants of interest seen were leaf rosettes of oxlips, Primula elatior, and
frequent common spotted orchids, Dactylorhiza fuchsii.

A very pleasant day was completed by Sylvia’s marvellous tea, well up to the standard for
which the East Anglian Group is renowned.

Catfield Fen and Winterton Dunes, Norfolk - 9 July Anne Beaufoy

Sunday 9th July was a day of varying weather with the rain, at times torrential, graciously
relenting to allow 15 members and friends to visit our two chosen venues. Steve Munyard
kindly led the group of keen fern enthusiasts in a part of England not renowned for a
proliferation of species but which boasts one particular treasure.

Our first call was at Catfield Fen (63/369215) near Barton Broad, administered by the
Butterfly Preservation Trust as a site for the swallowtail, whose young larvae we saw on
milk Parsley. The area includes sheltering carr of alders and oaks where Dryopteris dilatata
flourishes. Dykes of rich, dark water, the habitat of yellow waterlily, frogbit =
b adderwort divide these areas from the adjacent more open fen where the reed beds are
dominated by Phragmites, bog myrtle, hemp agrimony and birch scrub, in the understorey
of which runs Thelypteris palustris. On relatively less wet islands of Sphagnum amongst
the standing-water flora grew our goal — sturdy plants of Dryopteris cristata with attendant
D. carthusiana, and after a little search the hybrid D. x uliginosa was found. Osmunda
regalis added its splendid presence.

We repaired to Winterton Dunes Nature Reserve (63/496198) on the coast only a few miles
away to find the dry dunes and freshwater slacks giving such a sharp contrast to the
Broadlands environment of Catfield, yet two fern species manage to colonise both.
Dryopteris dilatata albeit in ‘bonsai form’, occurs in the low heathland herbage while

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Osmunda flourishes, with spore heads rampant, as thickets in some of the hollows. We also
found a polypody, probably Polypodium vulgare, amongst the roots of heather, bedstraw
and lichen. A few rather greasy looking pools provide damp areas and we were delighted to
see tiny toadlets of the Natterjack scuttling among the bog pimpernel at the edges.

The day’s activities concluded with a welcome and wonderful spread of refreshments
kindly provided by Bryan and Gill Smith at their recently acquired house and delightfully
sheltered garden at Oulton Broad, where their fern collection will doubtless thrive.

Weald of Kent — 10 September Barrie Stevenson

Our early autumn meeting took us south of the Thames with Steve Munyard as our leader.
A group of 14 members and friends enjoyed the warm, sunny day during which we saw a
fine tally of ferns, many of which are totally unknown in East Anglia. We met at the church
of Eridge Green on the A26 south of Tunbridge Wells for the short walk to the Sussex
Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve at Eridge Rocks (51/557357). This is a vast outcrop of grey
sandstone, weathered into often grotesque shapes; such outcrops are distinctive features in
this area of Kent.

Steve first led us through a narrow cleft between two high rocks towards a raised area
where we found Hymenophyllum tunbrigense. However, the recent cutting back of
Rhododendron ponticum had left the site exposed, and the fronds showed distinct signs of
desiccation. We walked further around the rock formation, passing stands of Dryopteris
dilatata and Pteridium aquilinum to an area which had not been cleared and found, in a
short section of sheltered pathway, good specimens of Blechnum spicant, Athyrium filix-
femina, Dryopteris filix-mas and D. affinis subspp. affinis and borreri. We found also, in an
area partly overhung with tree branches and on inclined rock surfaces, two large patches of
Hymenophyllum tunbrigense, the more exposed of the two with many fertile fronds bearing
typically toothed indusium valves.

photo: Jane Collins

East Anglian Regional Group’s visit to Eridge Rocks, Kent.
Standing: Barrie & Rosemary Stevenson, Karen Munyard, Bryan & Gill Smith, Peter Clare,
Anne Beaufoy, Marie Winder, Tim Pyner, Steve Munyard, Geoffrey Winder.
In front: Linda & Mick Craddock.

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After a picnic lunch we made our way to a site to the south-east of Eridge Green, on the
A267 (51/582335). We walked through the roadside woodyard to the woodland beyond at
Saxonbury Hill. Here we found head-high stands of Pteridium aquilinum through which a
narrow pathway had been cleared earlier that morning by Steve (ably assisted by Peter
Clare), towards their landmark, a distant yew tree. This tree was absolutely vital to the site
as it sheltered a damp bank which supported a thriving colony of Hymenophyllum
tunbrigense and also a splendid group of Dryopteris aemula. In a deep hollow below the
tree we also found Oreopteris limbosperma, Dryopteris x complexa (previously known as
D. tavelii), D. x deweveri and D. carthusiana. Our visit to Saxonbury Hill was in fact a
nostalgic reminder for Steve of the Inaugural Meeting of the South East Group (led by
Clive Jermy) at this site on 8th July 1984.

The East Anglian Group are most grateful to Steve for sharing with us his knowledge of
such fern-rich locations, and making our Kentish sojourn such a resounding success.

We rounded off our day by driving to Paul and Linda Ripley’s garden to the north of
Tonbridge. Here we found Paul’s ferns (mainly a large collection of Polystichum and
Dryopteris) growing very happily in a splendid woodland setting, while more tender ferns
thrived in a polythene tunnel. Linda had provided a tremendous spread of refreshments for
our visit and, grateful for such generous hospitality, we rounded off an excellent day by
sitting in the late afternoon sunshine, sipping tea and nibbling scones and cakes in a
typically English fashion.

End of Season Indoor Meeting, Barrow, Suffolk — 29 October Barrie Stevenson

At the time of writing we are looking forward to our traditional autumn get-together at the
house of Marie and Geoff Winder.

The programme will include slides and videos of ferns in America and New Zealand, and
displays of photographs of National and Regional BPS meetings, fern-ware boxes and
book-bindings and a photographic record of the fern-decorated ceramics, glass and treen
from the Reserve Collection of the Museum of North Devon at Barnstaple. The afternoon
will conclude with the delicious refreshments without which this particular occasion would
not be complete.

NORTH-WEST

Millennium Supper and Lecture, Crooklands Hotel - 1 April Melville Thomson

This was a social occasion instigated during our 1999 AGM in response to a request by
members who wished to celebrate the new millennium. The deal was that a good night out
would be justified only if legitimised by cultural overtones with an emphasis on
pteridology. The proposal was carried and the group accepted a suggestion that the topic
should be fossil ferns. We were fortunate in enlisting the support of Dr Margaret Collinson,
Reader in Plant Palaeobiology, Geology Department, Royal Holloway University of
London to provide the ‘overtones’. She chose to broaden the subject to ‘Fossil Ferns and
their Allies — a tour through 450 million years of earth history’. It was felt that
consideration of this enormous span of time would help us keep a sense of proportion about
the mere 2,000 years that we were celebrating.

In the event, forty-six North West Group members turned out for the evening and were
augmented by guests from the Westmorland Geological Society who appreciated this
opportunity to share common ground. Dr Collinson, with the aid of an impressive selection
of slides and samples, ambitiously surveyed the development of ferns and related

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pteridophytes, from the primitive Rhacophyton, a fern-like plant of Devonian times,
through to the diversity of the Carboniferous and Jurassic flora. She demonstrated, using
fossil evidence, how many evolutionary paths had failed while some had successfully led to
the range of present-day ferns. Even more bravely, she demonstrated the technique of
creating acetate casts of acid-etched fossils, not easy with make-shift equipment in a hotel
lecture room instead of a laboratory. She was able to show, however, how the finest detail
can be captured in this way and used to study the distinctive features of long-gone ferns.
The lecture was very well received and an appreciative vote of thanks was proposed by
Alastair Wardlaw.

The evening concluded with an informal dinner at the hotel which launched the Group into
the next 1,000 years with a feeling of satisfied contentment of mind and body.

Grange in Borrowdale, Cumbria — 10 June Peter Hindle
On a cool, blustery but sunny day eighteen of us assembled at the Bowder Stone car park
(35/252168), situated at an altitude of 90m. We were pleased to welcome several members
making their first outing with us. Annual rainfall at nearby Keswick is 1524mm but is much

bridge over the River Derwent gave us Asplenium ruta-muraria, A. trichomanes subsp.

strength of the prevailing wind. In 1994 many of us had noted Polypodium interjectum
‘Ramosum’ on a wall in Grange and were pleased to see it still flourishing along with
‘normal’ P. interjectum.

The group then moved up the valley and was soon examining Athyrium filix-femina and
Dryopteris dilatata along the laneside. As the slope increased Blechnum spicant made an
appearance along with Cryptogramma crispa, the latter low down on a dry-stone wall. On a

Asplenium septentrionale (noted some years ago) flourishing
A higher ascent on rock scree gave us A. adiantum-nigrum,
noted in this area by our Group.

which had not previously been

After lunch we circled Castle Crag, seeing many of the ferns already mentioned; the
caverns (probably small quarries), while yielding Gymnocarpium dryopteris in quantity,
i er, a well established colony of

The excursion ended at the home and garden of Nan Hicks, with afternoon tea and time to
study her fern collection and a rich variety of other plants. On our way back to the Bowder
Stone we looked at fronds in the churchyard and opinion was that we could probably
include D. oreades on our list, which brought the count up to 19 species and one variety.

Many thanks to all members whose knowledge and advice made the day such a success.
Special thanks to Nan and Sam Hicks for their generous provisioning of the party.

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Gait Barrows NNR and Hutton Roof Crags NNR - 1 July Mike Porter

Situated at about 30 metres above sea-level in the far north of Lancashire, Gait Barrows
NNR (34/480772) consists of a large area of limestone pavement surrounded by deciduous
woodland, much of the reserve being on a warm south-facing slope. Although some
damage has been done in the past, large sections of the pavement have remained
undisturbed and are home to a wide range of colourful plants and many different species of
butterfly. Twenty-two members of the North West group met here on a warm sunny
morning to investigate the fern flora of the reserve and to compare it with the higher, colder
limestone pavements at Great Asby which were visited in 1999.

The wooded areas around the pavement hold a good collection of common ferns —
Dryopteris filix-mas, D. dilatata, Athyrium filix-femina and Asplenium scolopendrium

ing well represented. However, the landscape changes dramatically as the dense
encircling trees are left for the open pavement. Here are wide expanses of smooth limestone
split by grykes and pock-marked with water-worn holes and, after the shade of the woods,
the sunlight reflecting on the pale rocks can be dazzling. In the cracks and holes in the
limestone we found good quantities of Polystichum aculeatum, Asplenium ruta-muraria
and A. trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens. There were also scattered clumps of the limestone
speciality Dryopteris submontana whose greyish fronds, like those of many of the other
ferns, rarely appear above the surface of the limestone, preferring the moist shade within
the grykes to the desiccating climate above. As we investigated the extensive pavements we
noted many interesting non-fern species including northern bedstraw (Gallium boreale), the
attractive dark-red helleborine (Epipactis atrorubens) and numerous plants of the scarce
fingered sedge (Carex digitata).

A surprising addition to our list of ferns was a fine specimen of Dryopteris carthusiana
found earlier by a member of the group in a somewhat moister area below the pavement
and we were pleased to discover an attractive patch of Asplenium ceterach as we made our
way back across the pavement for lunch. Interestingly, we had seen no specimens of either
A. viride or Gymnocarpium robertianum, often common plants of this habitat, but the low
altitude of Gait Barrows provides the explanation for their absence.

After a convivial lunch the party, much reduced in size, moved on to Hutton Roof Crags
(34/555780), another limestone pavement but situated considerably higher than Gait
Barrows, at about 260m. We quickly added new species to our list for the day including
Cystopteris fragilis and Phegopteris connectilis, this latter growing on humus on the edge
of a small patch of woodland and noted earlier by two members of the group. Even before
we reached the pavements proper we found large quantities of Gymnocarpium robertianum
growing abundantly on limestone clitter close to the path. In this same area we also spotted
a few plants of fly orchid (Ophrys insectifera). The limestone pavements themselves held
good quantities of Dryopteris submontana, Gymnocarpium robertianum and Polystichum
aculeatum but, as we had noted on previous visits, very little Asplenium viride, probably
because of the moderate altitude of the site. On the Orton limestones, rising to over 400m,
this species is much more frequent.

The early sunshine had now given way to cloud but the weather was still warm as we made
our back to the road and it was not until we were heading for home that rain started to fall.
Coniston and Grizedale, Cumbria — 29 July Jack Garstang

In a sustained July heat wave nineteen members assembled on the road alongside Church
Beck, Coniston (34/301978), for a not-too-strenuous walk around the village. Stone walls —
boundary, free-standing, retaining, bridging, dry-stone and mortared — were the main man-
made habitats en route. Within a few yards of the cars an extensive colony of the calcicole

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Asplenium trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens mixed with a few plants of A. ceterach
populated the side of an old boundary wall, put together with a mortar of slaked lime and
coarse grit. The wall top was one continuous line of Polypodium interjectum, thriving on
the more acid detritus accumulated in the capstones, terminating with a single
representative of Dryopteris filix-mas.

Looking over the bridge in the village centre we saw a cristate Athyrium filix-femina,
Polypodium vulgare, Asplenium scolopendrium and A. trichomanes. Dryopteris filix-mas,
D. affinis subsp. cambrensis, Athyrium filix-femina and Polypodium interjectum flanked the
road leading up to the Sun Hotel. An adjacent cottage garden displays a huge Osmunda
regalis in an elevated position and in superb condition, its rhizome base — about two feet in
diameter — showing its age. Beautiful Athyrium filix-femina overhung one side of Station
Road Beck, matched on the other side by mature Dryopteris dilatata. A retaining wall on
the Miners’ Track holds an ever-increasing colony of Asplenium adiantum-nigrum.
Cryptogramma crispa, Oreopteris limbosperma, Asplenium ruta-muraria and Pteridium
aquilinum (sporeless) gave us plenty to talk about on the walk over Miners’ Bridge and
back down the Coppermines track to the cars.

Lunch was enjoyed at The Kennels Road car park picnic site (34/3394) overlooking
Grizedale Beck, the cool forest and dappled shade providing a welcome contrast to the hot
and busy Coniston village. The car park gave us another fern, Onoclea sensibilis, obviously
a garden escape.

After lunch we went over the bridge to follow the path southwards alongside Grizedale
Beck below the steep fern covered slopes of Bank End. Dryopteris affinis (we thought we
found subspp. affinis, borreri and cambrensis), D. filix-mas, D. dilatata, all large, mature
and numerous, covered the slopes and the path side. Huge Athyrium filix-femina ov erhung
the stream and Blechnum spicant, Oreopteris limbosperma, Polypodium vulgare,
P. interjectum and a possible P. x mantoniae were found on stream banks and walls.

photo: Jack Garstang

I ted Ipt in Grizedale Forest.

North West Gro
Thelma Tate, Geoff Wilkins, ;. Melville Thomson, Harvey Shepherd, Alec Tate, Joan Hindle, R
Copson, Marjorie Garstang, Peter Hindle, Graham m Mathews, Di Copson, Brian Haskins, John Daffer,
Julie Wilkins, Marion Mathews, Ann Haskins

249

Crossing over the road near the Visitor Centre into the lane leading to Knott Coppice
woods we passed a high retaining wall covered with Asplenium trichomanes and
A. ceterach. The A. ceterach fronds were totally reversed and inrolled, their rusty backs
recalling the plant’s old name of ‘Finger Fern’. The lane, with its high elevated banks lined
mainly with Dryopteris affinis, D. filix-mas and Athyrium filix-femina, gave us the unusual
prospect of looking up and through the ferns.

Our last ‘site’ was the forest sculpture no. 1a, ‘Quarry Structure’, a work of art by Richard
Harris (1980). Shaped like a giant millipede, but also resembling a scolly, this fine
specimen was well able to support the whole party on its ‘midrib’. The final destination was
the Visitor Centre café for tea and cakes.

Isle of Bute, Argyll — 24-25 August
(Leaders: Melville Thomson & James Merryweather) Jack Garstang

the history of the struggle and work which had gone into the restoration of Ascog Hall
Fernery, beautifully articulated by Katherine Fyfe. Les Dugdale presented Katherine with a
finely dissected Nephrolepis ‘Suzy Wong’.

schists. Sheltered from the south-west by Arran and from the north by Cowal, Bute’s

largely underground to protect its many non-hardy ferns during the winter months. Here are
well over 100 subtropical ferns, mainly from Australasia and Central America, forming a

The afternoon saw us moving on to Mountstuart (26/108594), the architectural fantasy of
the third Marquess of Bute, situated in 300 acres of designer landscape. This Victorian
extravaganza has an extraordinary second floor master bedroom with double folding doors
opening onto a large heated roof top conservatory filled with Chusan palms, tropical ferns
and other exotic plants. Outside, Polystichum aculeatum, P. setiferum ‘Divisilobum’,
Dryopteris filix-mas and Asplenium scolopendrium decorated the fringes of a landscaped

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gametophyte of Trichomanes speciosum covering about one square metre of rock. The
slender filaments were examined in situ with a hand-held self-illuminated 100x microscope.

A 15 mile drive to the north end of Bute took us to Balnakailly Burn (26/0274) with its
surrounding woods, rocky outcrops, very long grass and head-high bracken — quite rough
going but a very sheltered location. After many years of searching we now at last saw a
definitive plant of Dryopteris expansa, 70cm tall, finely cut and looking superb. Here were

Dryopteris aemula on its banks while D. filix-mas, Athyrium filix-femina and Blechnum
spicant were found on the way out.

With some members having to catch an evening ferry off the island we split at this point
with one group going further into the woods. It just remains for me on behalf of the group
to thank James Merryweather for his help and guidance on Bute.

Swindale, Cumbria — 16 September Robert Sykes

We did not feel that we did justice to this area last year (1999 Bulletin Vol. 5 no. 4 p.179)
so eight of us went back for another look.

The best new ground was a gully high on the right as we approached the valley head
(35/496115) which yielded Polypodium vulgare, Oreopteris limbosperma, Athyrium filix-
femina, Dryopteris affinis subsp. affinis, D. dilatata, D. expansa (Jack Garstang asserted),
Cryptogramma crispa, Asplenium trichomanes, Phegopteris connectilis and Polystichum
aculeatum in a vertical rise of only 60 metres from an altitude of 500 metres.

From there we traversed the crags, finding at various times in addition Gymnocarpium
dryopteris, Dryopteris filix-mas, D. oreades, D. affinis (paleaceolobata we thought),
Cystopteris fragilis and Asplenium viride. The A. viride was not common, but there were
several plants scattered about and one outcrop had seven clumps of it growing within a
square yard or two — with Cryptogramma crispa, the arch calcifuge, in the middle of it. We
felt privileged perched high above the valley bottom on a warm autumnal day, looking
down Swindale with its crags and its drumlins. It is not just because it is beautiful that it is
special: it is not usual for a Lake District valley head to be as rich as this in ferns and other
flora. I still do not think that we have seen all there is to be seen there. We did not find the
Sheets of Dryopteris oreades that was so plentiful in 1983; either it has been
comprehensively mown by the sheep, or it has succumbed to the bracken. And again we
lacked the energy to hunt down the filmy fern.

AGM, Holehird, Windermere, Cumbria — 7 October Mike Porter
The venue for our seventh AGM, attended on this occasion by 30 members, was once again
the Garden Room at Holehird. Last year we had decided to try a full day for the AGM and
the success of this experiment encouraged us to repeat the formula. Thus the day started
with tea, coffee and biscuits, followed by a tour of part of the gardens, expertly and
entertainingly led by Cynthia Kelsall. The steadily falling rain was only a minor
inconvenience as we looked at a wide range of attractive plants, paying particular attention
to the many ferns which thrive here, the highlight being the National Collection of
Polystichum.

Lunch then followed and there was time to browse through vai ao a
photos of the year’s field meetings, to buy or just examine the wide variety of ferns for sale
or simply to chat with friends.

At 2 o’clock the official business of the day was transacted, including a brief summary of
the year’s highly successful and varied field meetings and suggestions for the programme
for 2001. There followed an absorbing and detailed account by Heather McHaffie, entitled
‘The Alpine Lady Fern in Britain’ in which, with the aid of slides, she recounted her work
on Athyrium distentifolium. She explained that the endemic Athyrium flexile is simply a
variety of A. distentifolium, occurring within populations of the latter on impoverished soils
at altitudes of above 750m in the Central Highlands. It is a recessive form that has a
distinctive appearance, being smaller in size than the type variety and with a markedly
deflexed petiole. However, it is able to produce spores in a lower nutrient environment and
thus, in a limited number of sites, is able to compete. Three large populations are currently
known with occasional plants occurring elsewhere. The talk was followed by an enjoyable
and lengthy discussion and many members were even happier when given specimens of
both var. flexile and the type variety to take to good homes!

The final business of the day was the consumption of the customary delicious tea provided
by members and the presentation of prizes. These went to Les Dugdale (crossword — won
on a cunning tie-break), Harvey Shepherd (Polystichum) and Jack Bouckley (small fern).
Les now has the task of devising a ferny puzzle for next year.

CORNWALL Rose Murphy

Carn Galver, West Penwith, West Cornwall - 2 May

On a really wonderful sunny day we held our first field meeting for the year — a visit to
Carn Galver (10/4236) in West Penwith where we were joined by the National Trust
Warden for the area, Joe Oliver. Despite the recent fire that had damaged much of the site
we were able to find both filmy ferns, Hymenophyllum tunbrigense and H. wilsonii
surviving well on the granite exposures on the north-east slope of the Carn (10/425365) and
a good list of ferns was made, including Athyrium filix-femina, Blechnum spicant,
Dryopteris affinis, D. dilatata, and D. aemula which was growing at the southern end of the
Tor (10/427360). It was interesting to observe how the ferns were faring despite the
strength and extent of the fire. All those previously recorded in the area were throwing up
new fronds, particularly the bracken!

After a picnic lunch we walked west towards Rosemergy (10/418363), stopping at intervals
to observe the many large plants of Asplenium obovatum subsp. lanceolatum on the granite
hedgewalls, some growing with A. adiantum-nigrum. Hopefully we searched for any plant
that could possibly be the hybrid between the two, but none could be found. Dryopteris
dilatata and D. filix-mas were abundant in wetter areas along the grass verges, while more
D. aemula, growing low down on the hedgewalls, was in that uncurling stage that so well
marks it as distinct from D. dilatata. Mortared walls by the old mine engine house below
Carn Galver (10/421363) supported Asplenium scolopendrium and A. trichomanes subsp.
quadrivalens, while a large pond nearby proved an irresistible attraction, this producing
Osmunda regalis (10/420364). Both Polypodium interjectum and P. vulgare were seen, the
P. vulgare being most common on the Carn, but occurring also along the tops of the
hedgewalls where it was noticeably very stunted. The day ended with the find of P. x
mantoniae on a roadside wall near Rosemergy (10/419363) where both parents were
growing together. The identification of this hybrid was later confirmed.

Mount Field, near Penhale Sands, West Cornwall - 24 May

The locality for the second meeting was Mount Field (10/7856 & 10/7857). Sited at the
edge of Penhale Sands, this field contains a number of dune hollows and low fixed dunes
as well as marshes. Though Ophioglossum vulgatum was not refound (this had been the

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major aim of the visit) it proved to be a lively and interesting day. Chris Page was able to be
with us in the morning and as a result we were fortunate enough to see not only three
species of horsetail, Equisetum arvense, E. fluviatile and E. palustre, but also three hybrids,
E. x dycei, E. x litorale and E. x rothmaleri, the first and third of these being recorded for
the first time in West Cornwall. It was also interesting to learn that the presence of flag iris
(Iris pseudacorus) was a good indicator for both E. fluviatile and E. palustre (we were in a
marsh of varying degrees of wetness at the southern end of the field!).

Rain drove us into a friendly pub at midday, giving us the opportunity to look at
photographs taken by one of the group when he visited Crete. Two of these were of
Anogramma leptophylla and Asplenium onopteris. The latter was of the greatest interest as
it had once been thought to occur in Cornwall, but mistakenly so.

Dozmary Pool, Bodmin Moor, East Cornwall -7 June

Originally a further visit to Rough Tor had been planned for this day as there had been a
recent report of more Huperzia selago on its northern slopes, but at the last minute it was
decided to visit both Dozmary Pool, the main site in Cornwall for Isoetes echinospora, and
Colliford Lake. A small group met at the Jamaica Inn at Bolventor ready to drive towards
Dozmary Farm (20/194746). In the shallow water at the edge of the pool, near the farm,
spring quillwort was abundant and the young plants were so congested in some areas that
they formed a veritable carpet. During the walk around the pool still more plants were seen,
many this time in deeper water. Oreopteris limbosperma was also recorded, growing by the
stream that flows out of Dozmary into Colliford Lake (20/194741).

On the way back to Bolventor we followed the road past Higher St Lukes (20/189759)
where a stop was made by a hedgebank that was particularly fern-rich. Here, in the roadside
ditches, Athyrium filix-femina, Dryopteris dilatata and D. affinis were locally frequent. One
of these D. affinis plants appeared so distinct that it was hoped that it would prove to be
subsp. cambrensis (20/189758), a fern that is very rare in Cornwall. Along these hedges
both Blechnum spicant and Polypodium vulgare were also abundant growing with bilberry
(Vaccinium myrtillus), B. spicant proving to be the most frequent fern on all kinds of banks
and hedgewalls in the vicinity of Dozmary Pool.

After a picnic lunch we drove down the rough lane to Meadows Downs (20/179737),
hoping to find Botrychium lunaria which was last recorded in fields near the edge o
Colliford Lake (20/181725) in 1987. The habitat was very changed, however, with much
Coarse grassland and though a thorough search was made, the moonwort could not be
found. However, Asplenium trichomanes subsp. quadrivalens was to be seen in abundance
on the mortared walls around Meadows Farmhouse (20/179737), more Oreopteris
limbosperma was found further south on the ‘Moonwort peninsula’, and at Deweymeads, at
the northern end of Colliford Lake, Asplenium adiantum-nigrum and A. scolopendrium
were seen on ruins left after the flooding of Redhill Marsh and some farmland during the
creation of the Lake.

St Clement Wood, north of Truro, West Cornwall - 1 August |
Though a large part of St Clement Wood is now under conifers, it seemed an interesting
Site to visit as the wood is considered to be ancient and two of the areas, Lady $ Wood and
Bishop’s Wood are separated by a track that could well be mediaeval in origin. In ae
Within Bishop’s Wood there is an old circular fort whose banks support an abundance o
Dryopteris aemula (10/829487).

Fourteen of us met in the forestry car park (
member, Matt Stribley. A short walk led us to the start o

10/820477), the leader for the day being a new
f the mediaeval track (10/826480),

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a rather wet and stony uphill pathway bordered by Cornish hedges. Most of the ferns here
were those that are typical of woodland: Athyrium filix-femina, Blechnum spicant,
Dryopteris dilatata and D. filix-mas, but at the base of the track there were some fine plants
of D. affinis subsp. affinis (10/827481) and halfway along it, where the hedges become very
high and shaded, there was more D. aemula (10/826481) growing with Blechnum spicant,
many bryophytes and such flowering plants as hairy wood-rush (Luzula pilosa) and wood
sorrel (Oxalis acetosella). Returning to the main streamside path we continued north until
the valley widened into a marsh with much Dryopteris carthusiana, D. dilatata and
splendid Osmunda regalis. Here we found one plant of Dryopteris x deweveri (10/829482)
which was just the third record for Cornwall.

Before lunch, which was had on a sloping bank by the stream, there was one more plant to
see. This was Hymenophyllum tunbrigense, not recorded here since 1867! It was growing
over a rocky, cliff-like bank above the main path (10/832486) where the substrate was
flushed with streams of water. The colony was very small but all were delighted to scramble
up the rough slope in order to see this fern in only its third extant locality in West Cornwall.
Though rain had threatened from time to time, the weather remained fine and we were able
to explore still further, adding Dryopteris affinis subsp. borreri (10/831488), Polystichum
setiferum and Pteridium aquilinum to the ferns seen, together with Polypodium interjectum
on the branches of various oaks, and Asplenium adiantum-nigrum and A. scolopendrium on
the mortared walls of a ruinous building.

Higher St Lukes, near Bolventor, East Cornwall — 29 August

Four of us revisited this area to search again for the Dryopteris that had looked so
distinctive earlier in the year. We found one plant, growing in a roadside ditch south of
Higher St Lukes (20/189758). It was mature enough to show all the characters that enabled
it to be verified as D. affinis subsp. cambrensis, and though further ferns were looked at,
none of the others proved conclusive. The opportunity was taken to work along another
road in the hope of finding more of the narrow scaly male-fern, but only D. affinis subspp.
affinis and borreri were seen. Near St Luke’ s Chapel (20/195763) along this road, however,
the moorland hedges were thick with bryophytes and lichens and such ferns as Athyrium
filix-femina, Blechnum spicant, Dryopteris dilatata and D. filix-mas, with an abundance of
Polypodium vulgare. P. interjectum was rare and was found only on the mortared walls of
bridges, as that over the River Fowey at Ninestones (20/213733). One interesting patch of
polypody was seen between these two localities and it proved to be the hybrid, P. x
mantoniae, new to this part of Bodmin Moor

Fairy Cross, Lostwithiel, East Cornwall — 3 October

This was a new venture, a meeting held at the home of one of our members, Caroline
Thomas, to discuss various aspects of growing ferns. It proved to be a most enjoyable and
instructive day, dealing with the cultivation of ferns, the collection of spores, preparation of
the sowing media, the sowing of the spores and the subsequent care of sporelings and
developing plants. Further care, pests and problems were also covered and though the group
was small, all present added to the success of the day by their queries, recounting
experiences and contributing other information. As a result, many felt encouraged to try
their hand at growing ferns from spores.

After lunch, enlivened by a tasting of a present from America, canned fiddleheads,
variously pronounced as crisp, vinegary and/or tasting of bracken(!), we walked aroun
Caroline’s garden enjoying the wealth of both native and foreign hardy fern species and
varieties. Some of her ferns have to be grown indoors and these included Asplenium
bulbiferum, some Pteris species and cultivars, and various Cheilanthes.

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Very many thanks are extended to Caroline for sharing her home with us and also her
expertise.

It is again hoped to end the year with an indoor meeting in December at the Cornwall
Wildlife Trust at Allet near Truro.

SCOTLAND Heather McHaffie

Glasgow - 8 July

In July we went to see Alastair Wardlaw’s garden and were joined by some members of the
Hamilton Natural History Society. We spent the morning enjoying the wide diversity of
native and hardy foreign ferns, as well as Jackie’s coffee and cheese scones. It started to
rain heavily by lunch time so we went back indoors. In the afternoon we visited Glasgow
Botanic Garden and saw the famous filmy fern house. By special arrangement we were
allowed to walk among the tree-ferns in the Kibble Palace glasshouse, which were very
dense and of some antiquity.

Island of Bute, Argyll — 24-27 August

In August we joined the North West Group on Bute, where James Merryweather took us to
some very varied sites. Our first stop, of course, was the Fernery at Ascog where the plants
provoked much discussion which was only stopped by the invitation to coffee. We also
visited a cave with Trichomanes gametophytes and a spectacular bank of Dryopteris
aemula. Most of the Scottish group stayed on over the weekend and we went to see the
fernery again. We also walked around part of the south end of the island past an extensive
area of Equisetum x dycei, Selaginella selaginoides and occasionally abundant Asplenium
marinum. We were extremely fortunate with the weather and those of us from the east coast
enjoyed the mild climate and more western species of ferns.

GROUP OF EUROPEAN PTERIDOLOGISTS (GEP) EXCURSION

Picos de Europa, North-East Spain - 4-9 August Patrick Acock
Ronnie Viane, co-ordinator of the GEP, led the group on a repeat of the 1992 BPS
excursion to this beautiful part of Spain with a climate similar to Scotland, albeit a little
warmer. We came from all over Western Europe this year, with a nice blend of regular
members and one or two newer faces including some younger members.

On the first day we journeyed to the Rio Zardon valley where in a steep sided gully we saw
Polystichum setiferum, Asplenium adiantum-
a relic of the Tertiary Laurisilva.
teris corleyi and its hybrid with

Stegnogramma pozoi, Dryopteris aemula,
nigrum and the reason for our visit, Culcita macrocarpa,
After a beach lunch we proceeded to the type site for Dryop
D. affinis, D. x asturiensis.

Next day we visited the Mirador del Fito with its splendid views of the Picos. We were
looking for Dryopteris guanchica but the only strong candidate was close to the car park.
Paul Ripley, however, did find large quantities of D. aemula. After lunch at a local Sidreria
with cider and blue cheese, a speciality of the region, we proceeded to a wooded valley
close to Gobiendes where the main interest was Stegnogramma pocol, Woodwardia
radicans, Hymenophyllum tunbrigense and Trichomanes speciosum.

Lago Enol and Lago de la Ercina. An easy
ianum, Asplenium viride and Dryopteris
submontana) gave way to a stiff climb to much larger scree slopes where all three British
polystichums could be seen along with the hybrids P. x illyricum and P. x lonchitiforme.

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On Tuesday, after a long drive to Soto de Sajambre in the Rio Sella Valley, we had another
rather long climb, but were finally rewarded by finding Athyrium distentifolium. That
evening we had a fine farewell dinner.

On the last day the British trio were joined only by Andreas Sarazin who took us to a valley
south of Cangas de Onis to see another plant of Dryopteris x asturiensis, a magnificent
specimen. We at last had our gentle day, gradually working our way up the valley noting
many of the ferns that we had seen earlier on the tour. In a steep sided gorge we were
rewarded for our persistence by finding a new site for Culcita macrocarpa.

The 2001 Excursion will probably be to southern France at Whitsuntide. If you would like
details of the GEP please contact Dr R. Viane, Dept. of Morphology, Systematics and
Ecology, Section: Pteridology, K.L. Ledeganckstr. 35, B-9000 Belgium.

E-mail: ronnie.viane@rug.ac.be; Tel & Fax: +32-9-2645057.

HORTICULTURAL SHOWS

BBC GARDENERS’ WORLD LIVE! - 14-18 June A.R. Busby

It was very encouraging to arrive at our allotted space at the NEC, Birmingham and find
that the staging was already prepared, enabling me to make an immediate start on
furnishing the stand. I used a mixture of British fern varieties and foreign hardy ferns.
Compared to other societies’ stands, I feel that ours lacks that certain punch that would
both inform the public and encourage interest. With the BPS Committee’s agreement, I
hope to prepare some suitable colourful posters for next year’s show.

for the first hour of break-up only private cars are allowed in. This means that the amateur
exhibitors can quickly load and get away before lorries start to fill the Halls.

We still need more assistance with manning the stand. I cannot be there for the Wednesday,
Thursday or Friday. Thankfully, local members come to my aid but I do feel that it is unfair
for the burden to fall on the same few every year. The NEC is well served by public
transport and an extra few pairs of hands would be very welcome.

My sincere thanks to Sue Pierce-Seary, Jeff Whysall, Alan Ogden, John and Margaret
Collins and Maurice Green for giving their time to man the stand.

SOUTHPORT FLOWER SHOW - 17-19 August A.R. Busby

I arrived on Wednesday afternoon to find Victoria Park rather soggy which is not a good
omen at Southport Show. By Thursday morning things had dried out somewhat and the
weather proved to be mainly sunny. The only hiccup was rain over Thursday night which,
largely due to compaction of the soil by Thursday’s visitors, produced small lakes and a
minor canal in the exhibition tent on Friday morning.

Lawrence Kirkham arrived with a smart garden urn sporting a superb plant of Polystichum
setiferum ‘Plumoso-divisilobum’ and a large Rhododendron stump planted up with various
hardy ferns. Together with some 20 vases of cut fronds, these created a very attractive stand
which solicited much favourable comment from passing visitors.

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A notable event took place on Friday morning, when Brian Robinson introduced himself as
the son of Norman Robinson, a much respected member of our Society who died in 1976
(see Bulletin 1(4):179 & 5(3):137). Mr Robinson had called in with a few old fern books to
ask if we could find a good home for them. This we have done with grateful thanks.

The standard of the exhibits was very good which was to be expected after such a cool, wet
spring and a relatively cool summer. However, I was dismayed to see that a few classes had
only one exhibitor and that there were no entries for class 7. None-the-less it was gratifying
to see that presentation continues to be of a high standard; all the exhibits were of show
bench standard but for me the best fern in the show was Lawrence Kirkham’s Adiantum
capillus-veneris ‘Cornubiense’.
The judge was A.R. Busby. The prize winners are listed below.
Class 6 Individual Championship: Four hardy, two greenhouse and two foreign hardy
ems: Ist Mr & Mrs B. Russ, 2nd Mr I. Rawson (2 entries)
Class 7 Three Hardy British Ferns (dissimilar): (no entries)
Class 8 Three Hardy Foreign Ferns: Ist L. Kirkham, 2nd I. Rawson (2 entries)
Class9 Three Polypodium (distinct varieties): 1st L. Kirkham (1 entry)
Class 10 Three Polystichum (distinct varieties): Ist L. Kirkham (1 entry)
Class 11 Three Athyrium: 1st L. Kirkham (1 entry)
Class 12 Three Asplenium (excluding A. scolopendrium): 1st L. Kirkham (1 entry)
Class 13. One British Fern (any kind or variety): Ist L. Kirkham, 2nd I. Rawson,
3rd Mrs E.A. Gibbs (3 entries)
Class 14 One Greenhouse Fern: Ist L. Kirkham, 2nd Mrs E.A. Gibbs, 3rd I. Rawson
(3 entries)
Class 15 Three Asplenium scolopendrium (3 distinct varieties): Ist L. Kirkham (1 entry)
Lawrence and I would like to express our thanks to the following members who took the
trouble to make long journeys to see the show and spend a few minutes chatting to us on
the stand: L. Dugdale, C. Mullins, I. Gray, B. Russ and I. Unsworth.
My thanks to Lawrence Kirkham for organising the Society stand and for providing such
interesting items to improved the attractiveness of the stand this year, and to Libby Gibbs
for her enthusiastic support.
The dates for next year’s show are 16-18 August and we look forward to seeing you there.
We are always short of help on the stand so if any members have just a few hours to spare I
would be very pleased to accept offers of help.

THE AMERICAN FERN SOCIETY

The AFS invites all readers of this Bulletin to join the American Fern Society. Regular members
receive the Fiddlehead Forum five times a year. This newsletter is published for the benefit of

Ose who are interested in growing ferns, hunting for them, and expanding their knowledge of
ferns. Journal members also receive the scientific quarterly American Fern Journal. Membership

ieti hereb
AFS SUBSCRIPTION PAYMENTS: Our societies have an exchange arrangement w y
members of the BPS can pay their AFS subscription through the BPS Membership Secretary and
vice versa. Contact your Membership Secretary for details.

257

SECRETARIAL NOTES

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2001 — The 98th AGM will take place on Saturday 3rd
March 2001 in the Gilmour Building, Cambridge Botanic Garden at 2.00 p.m.

COMMITTEE VACANCIES - In accordance with paragraph 3, section 3 of the Society’s

Constitution, two vacancies will occur due to the retirement of the two longest serving
ommittee members. In addition, there are four unfilled vacancies. Nominations are invited

from Society members to fill these vacancies at the Annual General Meeting in 2001. The

names of the nominees, proposers and seconders, together with a letter from the nominee

indicating his/her willingness to serve, should reach the General Secretary by 10th February
001 at the latest.

SUBSCRIPTIONS 2001 — Members are reminded that subscriptions for 2001 are due on
Ist January 2001 and should be paid to the Membership Secretary, Mr M.S. Porter, 5 West
Avenue, Wigton, Cumbria CA7 9LG. Cheques should be made payable to ‘The British
Pteridological Society’. Current rates are given inside the front cover of this issue. Payment
can be made by Credit Card — see renewal form. Standing Order forms are printed on the
reverse of renewal forms and are also available from the Membership Secretary and the
BPS web site. Standing Orders may be paid on Ist January or Ist February. In either case,
membership is deemed to be from Ist J anuary to 31st December.

PUBLICATIONS BY AIRMAIL — Our journals can be sent by airmail to overseas
members, provided that they advise the Membership Secretary and pay an additional
subscription to cover airmail postage. See inside front cover for rates.

FUTURE PLANS FOR BPS DISCLAIMER — All members attending Society meetings
should be aware of the Society’s new Safety Code (see p. 275), as well as the Code of
Conduct for the Conservation and Enjoyment of Wild Plants (see 1999 Bulletin 5(4):199),
and will in the future be required to sign a Disclaimer form (currently being designed).

information.

CENTENARY FUND - This fund is used to promote the study of all aspects of
pteridophytes — horticultural, scientific and educational, whether by amateurs, students or
professional pteridologists. As such its scope is much broader and more flexible than the
Greenfield Fund. Anyone wishing to avail themselves of this fund should contact the
General Secretary for further information.

SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS — There are three Special Interest Groups. For further
information please send a stamped addressed envelope to the organisers:

Tree-ferns: Prof. A.C. Wardlaw, 92 Drymen Road, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 2SY.

Foreign Hardy Ferns: AR. (Matt) Busby, 16 Kirby Comer Road, Canley, Coventry CV4 8GD.
Filmy Ferns: §.J. Munyard, 234 Harold Road, Hastings, East Sussex TN35 5NG.
MEMBERS INFORMATION SERVICE — Members often require information and
advice on many aspects of pteridophytes but are reluctant to ask or simply do not know
where to obtain help. Queries from members on any aspects of the biology, identification or

258

cultivation of ferns or fern allies should be sent, with three first class stamps, to
A.R. Busby, 16 Kirby Corner Road, Canley, Coventry CV4 8GD.

READING CIRCLE —- The Society operates a reading circle for the American Fern
Journal, a quarterly publication containing much information for those seriously interested
in ferns. The Fiddlehead Forum, which publishes many ‘ferny’ items of interest to the
amateur grower, accompanies it. To receive these journals contact A.R. Busby, 16 Kirby
Corner Road, Canley, Coventry CV4 8GD.

FOREIGN FERN SOCIETY JOURNALS HELD BY THE SOCIETY — The Society
exchanges journals with many other fern societies in the world. We have a collection of
journals/newsletters from societies in the United States (3), Australia (5), New Zealand,
India, Switzerland and the Netherlands. If members would like to browse these, they are
welcome to get in touch with the back numbers organiser for a list of our holdings. The
journals can then be borrowed for just the cost of postage both ways.

BACK NUMBERS OF JOURNALS - This year the Botanical Society of the British Isles
parted with the back issues of its journals for just the cost of postage because very few
members had availed themselves of them over the last thirty years. We do sell about £100
worth of our old journals each year and if we had complete runs we could probably sell one
or two of these a year. The prices are kept reasonably low under the philosophy that they
are better kept in the hands of the membership than in the loft of the back numbers
organiser! They are full of interesting data for the various interests of members. I am certain
you would find something of interest to you. I have just taken a back run of our sister
organisation’s American Fern Journal and have been fascinated with both the history of the
American Fern Society, especially the people and their love of ferns, and the gradual
advancement of ideas this century. I cannot wait to fill in the gaps in my collection. I hope
our journals do not await the fate of the BSBI’s of being recycled. Take a sample pack for
just £5 or send for a list of back numbers from Patrick Acock, 13 Star Lane, St Mary Cray,
Kent BR5 3LJ. P.J.A.

WORLD-WIDE WEB SITE — The URL (address) of the BPS Web site hosted by The
Natural History Museum is ‘http://www.eBPS.org.uk’. The content is regularly updated.
See also article by our webmaster entitled ‘eBPS’ on p. 276.

E-MAIL ADDRESSES -— We plan to include e-mail adresses on the next BPS membership
address list. If you are on e-mail and are willing to have your address published, please send
it to the Membership Secretary at: Membership @eBPS.org.uk.

BPS VIDEO ‘BRITISH FERNS’ — This twenty-five minute video shows most of the
native British ferns growing in their natural habitats. It demonstrates the wide variety of
size and form to be found in British ferns and the broad range of habitats they colonise.
Attention is drawn to key identification characters for each species. tee
Schering Agriculture and the National Museum of Wales funded the video. It is avai . e
for loan to members and interested organisations for £3, to cover handling costs (UK only).
For further details write to the General Secretary enclosing a stamped addressed envelope.
ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY — Our Society is affiliated to the RHS, enabling
a limited number of members to enjoy certain privileges in connection with RHS Shows,
competitions and services.

BRITISH WILDLIFE — Concessionary individual subscriptions to British Wildlife
Magazine are available to BPS members.

PAYMENT OF EXPENSES — Documents setting out the Rules of Conduct for the
Treasurer (BPS/T/1), the Rules for Seeking Re-imbursement of Personal Travelling and

259

Administrative Expenses by officers and members acting on behalf of the Society
(BPS/T/2), and the Authorities for Payment (BPS/T/3) can be obtained from the Honorary
Treasurer on request.

COPYRIGHT -— All contributors to the BPS journals and webpage are now required to
sign an agreement assigning ownership of copyright of the article, photograph etc. to the
BPS. The adoption of this practice brings the BPS into line with other similar societies and
has the aim of ensuring maximum international protection against infringement of
copyright. In other words, it safeguards the contributors’ work from unlawful copying and

is is especially important with the increase in information disseminated
electronically. It does not stop contributors from using their own work elsewhere provided

at they acknowledge the original source of publication.

MERCHANDISE -— Do you have a BPS sweatshirt and/or tee-shirt, or one of the new polo
shirts? These are all dark green with a small BPS logo in yellow. Ties, metal badges,
bookmarks and car stickers sporting our logo are also available. Other items for sale:
greetings cards, postcards and notelets. Can’t find your order form? Contact Mrs
L.I. Craddock, 40 Russell Drive, Ampthill, Beds. MK45 2TX for details. Linda would also
welcome suggestions for new stock.

HELP FOR NEW MEMBERS -~ A leaflet is being prepared, “sigh for new members
but probably of interest to some other members, explaining how help, advice and
information can be obtained for different areas of pteridological interest. It is also intended
to maintain a list of members who are willing to offer theoretical and practical help and
guidance in one or more areas, such as growing ferns, identifying pteridophytes and the
biology of pteridophytes, or who are prepared to take individual members and overseas
visitors into the field to see pteridophytes in their local area. If you think you would like to
be included, please contact the General Secretary.

WANTED: ARCHIVIST - The Society urgently requires an archivist to actively maintain
and enhance its collection of various archive materials, mainly photos, letters and a few
sundry items. Further information is available from the General Secretary.

WANTED; HELP WITH PUBLICATIONS - We need a technical editor to facilitate the
flow of electronic information through the Societys’ newsletters, journals and the web site,
e.g. to convert newsletter format to web format, help with journal layout and production
etc. Assistance is also needed with the preparation of our ocasional Specail Publications
and leaflets. This all involves a wide range of publishing, editing and design skills. Or do
you have an aye for detail or are familiar with MS WORD? IF So, we would like you’re
help. If you think that you could help the Society in any of these ways (if you’ve found ten
of the twelve mistakes in this paragraph you definatelycan help), please contact the
Chairman of the Publications Subcommittee, Miss Josephine Camus, Botany Department,
The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, teL. 020-7942-5587.
e-mail: Publications @eBPS.org.uk

ASSISTANCE REQUIRED ON BPS STANDS AT FLOWER SHOWS ~ The Society
needs volunteers to assist at the BBC Gardeners’ World Live! and Southport Flower Show.
You do not need to be an expert on ferns or fern growing, just prepared to spend a few
hours or a day on the stand. Expenses are available and should be negotiated with
A.R. Busby in the first instance. Further information is available from A.R. (Matt) Busby at
16 Kirby Corner Road, Canley, Coventry CV4 8GD

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2000

MINUTES of the 97th Annual General Meeting held at the Chelsea Physic Garden,
London on Saturday 25th March 2000 at 14.00 hours.

IN THE CHAIR: The President, Mr M.H. Rickard.

PRESENT: MrR.G. Ackers, Mr P.J. Acock, MrM.Amoy, MrS.M. Andrews, Miss
A. Beaufoy, MrC. Brotherton, Mr A.R. Busby, Miss J.M.Camus, Mr M.J. & Mrs
L.I. Craddock, Mr A.J. Dickman, Mr G. Downey, Dr M. Gibby, Mr G.K. Hoare, Miss
J.M. Ide, Mrs J. Keyes, Mr A. Leonard, Mrs S. Lewis, Dr S.D. Martinelli, Miss C. Mullins,
Mr S. & Mrs K. Munyard, Mr A.H.Ogden, MrB.O’Shea, — Miss A.M. Paul, Mr
M.S. Porter, Mr T. Pyner, Mr P.H. Ripley, Dr F.J. Rumsey, Dr C. Sanchez, Dr M. Shaffer-
Fehre, MrB.R. Stevenson, Mr F.A. Strang, MrT. Taylor, Mr P. Temple, Mr A. & Mrs
M. Urquhart, Dr T.G. Walker, Mr R.M. Walls, Prof. A.C. Wardlaw, Mr G.H. Winder, Mr
J.R. Woodhams, Mrs J. Yesilyurt.

Item 1 - APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE: W¢ Cdr E.J. & Mrs R. Baker, Mr R.J. Cooke,
Mr J.A. Crabbe, Mr J. & Mrs M. Garstang, Dr N.J. Hards, MrL. Kirkham, Miss
R.J. Murphy, Mrs M.E. Nimmo-Smith, Mr A.C. & Mrs M. Pigott, Mr R.J. & Mrs B. Smith,
Prof. B.A. Thomas, Mr R.N. Timm, Mr B. & Mrs A. Wright.

Item 2—- APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Minutes of the 96th Annual General Meeting held
on 20th March 1999, published in the 1999 Bulletin (Volume 5, no. 4), were approved.
(Note: The Minutes published in the Bulletin and approved at the meeting were a slightly
shortened version of the Minutes as recorded in the Minute Book.)

Item 3- MATTERS ARISING: None.

Item 4 - REPORT OF THE HONORARY GENERAL SECRETARY:
A society that celebrates a group of plants which has been around for some 200 million
years and had its origin some 400 million years ago obviously has some trouble marking a
mere 2,000 years on the human calendar. But our Society was having a go! This year, Pony
members had already been to the other end of the world — and, despite the very obvious
attractions, had come back! Last year saw nothing so exotic, but a band of stalwarts
continued to support the Society’s diversity of activities, promoted the Society to the
outside world, gaining a few converts as they did so, and embellished a royal residence.
Committee continued to work in the background, with very full agendas for its meetings as
it continued to look at various aspects of the Society's work.

APPLICATION FOR CHARITY STATUS: The attaining of Charity status continued to
exercise the Committee greatly. Although the procedure seems straightforward enough, the
Committee had found that there was extensive detail which needed to be considered very
carefully, and consequently an application had not yet been made. As a result - the
Committee’s discussions a number of questions on the meaning and implications of some
of the articles of association of a charitable company and the responsibilities of charity
trustees had been directed to LC.C. Legal & Commercial Services, Cardiff, for advice and
their reply was awaited.

CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION: Certain changes to the Society's Constitution had
been found to be appropriate, partly in view of the preparation for application for Charity
Status. The Committee was asking the Membership at this AGM to approve these changes.
All these matters were to be discussed under Item 12 and the changes are itemised there.

by the auditors, the Committee had looked at the

FINANCE: ents
Bi, As the result, of Come) he Treasurer. Rules of Conduct for the

Procedures for the authorisation of payments by t

261

Treasurer of the British Pteridological Society (BPS/T/ 1), had been agreed. Similarly,
Rules for Seeking Re-imbursement of Personal Travelling and Administrative Expenses
(BPS/T/2) had been prepared and would be given to all new officers, committee members,
appointees and others on official Society business. Both documents were available from the
General Secretary.

would be considerable, it would not be circulated automatically, but specific issues could
be requested. Other publications and newsletters received by the Society could be borrowed
on request.

ANNUAL FERN SHOW: The Committee had discovered that A.R. (Matt) Busby had
personally carried the cost of the prizes and any shortfall in the running costs of the annual
Fern Show at Warwick University. This was felt to be untenable and the Committee agreed
that the Treasurer should annually make available up to £100 for prize money. This would
also allow the inclusion of extra classes to attract the novice and non-fern-growing fern
enthusiast. Hopefully, this would also increase the popularity of the Show to members.

The presence of the BPS at Flower Shows is very effective in attracting new members. The
two shows at which the Society annually had a presence were the Southport Flower Show
in August and the BBC Gardeners’ World Live! at the NEC Birmingham in June.
A.R. Busby also felt that the Malvern Shows were worth Society presence, however, he had

to know more about what is involved, they should contact A.R. Busby, or L. Kirkham who
had kindly taken over the responsibility for the Society’s stand at Southport Show.

The Committee wished to thank Matt for all his enthusiasm and hard work in organising
and manning the Society’s stand at Southport and other shows, and also to thank those
members who had helped him over the years.

CENTENARY FUND: The Centenary Fund Trustees had been pleased to make an award of
£250 to W.D. Speer to attend the 1999 International Bracken Conference in Manchester.

SCANNING AND PROTECTION OF THE SOCIETY’S FIRST MINUTE BOOK: Aware

purposes, but the Publications Subcommittee was to consider two proposals: firstly, that the
CD-ROM be made available for sale to members and, secondly, that extracts from the

fire-safe-box would not ultimately protect the book from an intense fire.
ARCHIVES: _The Committee was currently seeking the advice of a professional archivist
about the Society’s archives. Although the Committee had yet to find a suitable deposit for

old Correspondence. A volunteer was required to seek, collect and collate newspaper and
magazine articles on all subjects of interest to the Society. Anyone wishing to volunteer, or
to learn more of the task before deciding to volunteer, should contact the General Secretary.

262

PATRON: M.H. Rickard, our President, reported that the collection of ferns for HRH The
Prince of Wales had been delivered to the Prince’s home, Highgrove, and the tree-ferns had
been planted under his supervision. The ground ferns were potted up and should have been,
or would be shortly, planted out.

SARAJEVO BOTANIC GARDEN APPEAL: The Society responded to an appeal for
books and journals for Sarajevo Botanic Garden, which lost its Library during the fighting
in Bosnia. There was a pteridologist at the Garden and a set of Gazettes, from Volume 12 to
the present, and a full set of Pteridologists had been donated in support of the Garden.

FINALLY, A CALL TO ARMS! If there was one thing that the trip to New Zealand had
confirmed, it was that ferny folk are amongst the friendliest and most helpful one could
find anywhere in the world. The BPS is no exception, and the General Secretary wished to
encourage members to consider repaying some of the friendship and help that they have
received, by helping in some way with the Society’s activities. The AGM would contain
several appeals for help and others either already have or else would appear in the Bulletin.
There had been some responses to past appeals, for which we are grateful, but more were
required to ensure that the Society could provide the services and programme that members
desired. Individual members might wish to respond either by undertaking a task or perhaps
by sharing a task with another member. Members who felt they could not help the Society
directly might be able to encourage an interest in ferns through their local natural history
societies, gardening clubs, or school or college activities. One thing was certain, whatever
members decide to do, they could be assured of willing advice and encouragement from
officers and other members of the Society.

Item 5- REPORT OF THE HONORARY TREASURER: Mr A. Leonard presented the
unaudited accounts for the year ending 31st December 1999. He had no further comments
to add to the notes given with the accounts.

The accounts were approved, subject to auditing. Proposed by Dr M. Gibby, and seconded
by Dr F.J. Rumsey.

Item 6 - REPORT OF THE MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY: Mr M.S. Porter reported
that the membership database had been converted to a new system at a minimal cost of
approximately £70. E-mail addresses would be included in the next membership address
list, so members would be asked to supply Mike with their addresses.

The sending of reminders to members who failed to pay their subscriptions in good time
was both time consuming for the Membership Secretary and expensive for the Society. The
Committee had agreed that, from 2000, members paying by Standing Order should be tin
the option of paying on January Ist or February Ist. It was hoped that for some mem 2
this would alleviate the problem of having so many subscriptions due at the ee i

the year and would also encourage more members to arrange Standing Orders for the
payment of their subscriptions.

were a result of illness, lac
Unfortunately a comparatively large number of members

263

have lapsed if membership fees had not been paid for a complete year and no official
notification of resignation had been received.) It must be assumed that reasons for lapsing
are the same as those for resignations, although inertia might also be a significant element!

A short discussion on possible ways of reducing the number of late payments of
subscriptions and reminders, and of reducing lapsed memberships, followed the
Membership Secretary’s report.

Item 7 - REPORT OF THE CONSERVATION OFFICER (AND RECORDER):
Mr R.J. Cooke reported on:

BIODIVERSITY ACTION PLAN WORK: Introductions of Woodsia ilvensis, co-ordinated
by the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh and funded by English Nature and Scottish
Natural Heritage, had proceeded according to plan, and the wet summer of last year helped
with the initial establishment of sporelings. Further re-introduction work was planned for
two sites during 2000.

Work, co-ordinated by Plantlife, had also begun on identifying the locations of all pillwort
and marsh clubmoss sites in England. Further work would concentrate on identifying
suitable management of their preferred habitats, usually of heathland in the lowlands.
Curiously, most of the scarce wildlife found on heathland was dependent upon bare ground;
in the case of pillwort and marsh clubmoss, they both preferred open damp ground which
was free from competition from other more vigorous species.

NEW LEGISLATION: It would be of interest to members that a new Bill, The Countryside
and Rights of Way Bill, was passing through Parliament. If enacted, this would give
significantly stronger protection to SSSIs and rare species.

CODE OF CONDUCT: This was published last year by BSBI, with input from the BPS,
and a summary was published in last year’s Bulletin. This Code outlined what the botanical
conservation societies believed to be reasonable and responsible practice for the members,
and pointed out the legal framework within which we must all act. Members were strongly
encouraged to read and adhere to this code whenever they were in the field.

BETTER CO-ORDINATION: A three-year post was soon to be recruited, working in The
Natural History Museum and funded by English Nature. This post would improve co-
ordination between the British Pteridological, Bryological, Phycological and Lichen
Societies and Plantlife, English Nature and The Natural History Museum, to ensure that the
tremendous volunteer effort which these societies could muster was targeted most
effectively, for example in surveys for specific species, or surveys in particular parts of the
country. This should ensure that the vast number of records collected will find their way
into the various recording schemes, and that feedback from the schemes will be made more
readily available to the members of the societies.

Item 8 -SUBCOMMITTEE (Permanent) REPORTS:

8.1 — MEETINGS SUBCOMMITTEE: The Meetings Secretary, Mr P.J. Acock, reported that
the meetings in 1999 had met with a mixed response as regards numbers although only
favourable reports had been received with regard to content. The Spring Indoor Meeting
and AGM at Reading were well attended and enjoyed. The Kew meeting, usually the best
attended meeting of the year, drew far fewer members than normal despite the opportunities
to visit unusual places. The field meeting to Priddy in Somerset was fairly well attended
and all enjoyed the range of habitats the leaders had chosen. Saville Gardens in Windsor
Great Park drew a range of people from far and wide to view many beautiful plants in a
woodland setting. The annual fern show had been poorly attended and this was
disappointing for Matt Busby, the organiser, who had persevered to provide an enjoyable

264

day at a centrally located venue. It must have been disappointing also for Harry and Sue
Olsen who had travelled all morning in order to give a preview of the fern excursion to be
based in Seattle during 2003. On the Isle of Man there were only four participants,
thankfully boosted with a few enthusiastic islanders. Wensleydale had been very well
attended and Barry Wright was to be thanked for his excellent preparation of both the field
trips and the evening microscopy sessions. The last indoor meeting saw the Natural History
Museum staff put on an excellent day. Members who came did not want to leave, however,
numbers were again disappointing at 18.

The Secretary thanked the Subcommittee and all those people who had led meetings
throughout 1999. Their commitment to the Society was appreciated. It was mainly through
their efforts that the Society maintained and would preserve a lasting interest in ferns.

Although all societies need their armchair members and are grateful for their support in
other ways, it was disappointing to the Meetings Subcommittee and to the benevolent
people they chose to lead meetings, when there was a dearth of interest. Huge numbers
might present logistical problems but a few more members attending day events would
certainly be encouraging. Members were invited to hear this plea.

8.2 — PUBLICATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE: Miss J.M. Camus, the Acting Chairman, reported
that the Publications Subcommittee had met once since the last AGM.

Two members had attended a one-day meeting in October entitled “Advice to Publishers
and Editors’, which had provided a lot of useful information and contacts.

JOURNALS AND WEB PAGE: The Society’s journals and web page would be covered in
the reports from the individual editors. However, three general matters needed to be
brought to the Society’ s attention:

1. The need for a copyright agreement between the Society and contributors to all

publications (hard copy and electronic). Legal advice was being sought on this.
date technology with archive

2. The need for all publications to be produced by up-to-
top editor needed to

copies kept at least on diskette and preferably on CD. A technical/desk
be recruited.

3. Indexing. The Society had been very fortunate that three people had volunteered — one
for each journal. Indexing was a very complex task and the Subcommittee ad
recommended a meeting for all concerned with a presentation from a suitable person from
the Society of Indexers.

SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS: It had been ten years since th
Publication. The Subcommittee had resolved that a publication ev« :
aimed for, but more volunteers — a managing editor, volume editors, proof readers so
authors — were desperately needed. If members thought they could help, they ses oa
Miss J.M. Camus. [Department of Botany, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road,
London SW7 5BD; tel.: 020 7942 5587, e-mail: Publications @eBPS.org.uk]

1900 fern books should be published this year.
f Dyce’s work on Polystichum

e issue of the last Special
every two years should be

Hall and Rickard’s bibliography of pre- gine
Progr ess had been set in train towards the publication 0
Varieties in a few year’s time.
ime for many
o25 : : iss A.M. Paul, reported that for the first time To
BULLETIN: The Editor, Miss A.M. Pa a, thanked all who had assisted in

years the Bulletin had been published on schedule. S
achieving this by sending in their reports and photographs in good time.
received and it was hoped that other

The fj in had been
et report. for: the 2000, Billa tly. Alison reminded members that, as

Contributors would produce their reports as promp

265

always, photographs taken during meetings would be appreciated. There was the possibility
of additional photographs being put up on the Society’s web site, thus even more
photographs from members would be welcome.

8.2.2 - THE FERN GAZETTE: On behalf of both Editors, Miss J.M. Camus reported that
two issues of The Fern Gazette, parts seven and eight of Volume 15, comprising six papers
and five book reviews, were published in 1999,

The Editors were very grateful to the Computer Graphics Department of The Natural
History Museum for assistance in streamlining the production of this journal, which had
resulted in considerable saving of both the Editors’ time and the Society’s money.

The Society was very fortunate to have been offered help by Dr Dave Flanagan, Harrogate,
who was compiling the index to Volume 15. This should be ready to be mailed with the
second issue of The Fern Gazette in 2000.

Seven manuscripts were currently in various stages of the refereeing/editorial process for
publication. One of these was the direct result of information displayed on the Society’s
web page. The start of a new volume brought the opportunity for making various changes to
the style of The Fern Gazette, some of which had been discussed at the last AGM. Hazel
Sims, a professional graphic designer, had produced a new cover design to project the
journal’s image as a serious and quality scientific publication.

It had been discovered that The Fern Gazette was not covered by a major indexing and
abstracting organisation called The Institute for Scientific Information Inc. (ISI) available
on-line through BIDS (Bath Information and Data Services). ISI had asked for a trial free
subscription of The Fern Gazette for four issues. The Committee had agreed to this.

8.2.3 — PTERIDOLOGIST: No report had been received.

8.2.4 - WORLD WIDE WEB SITE: The Editor, Mr A.C. Pigott, reported that the web site
had been further developed this year with additions including extracts from the Society’s
papers of 1899 and 1900, more Fern Gazette abstracts, more information on the Society
itself, membership forms and a ‘What’s New?’ page. A number of technical improvements
had been made including the ability of visitors to be e-mailed when the site changed, and
the collection of site visit statistics. The site currently received an average of 18 visits a day

~ this was without any serious attempt to raise its profile with the various Internet search
engines.

A professional website editing and management suite, GoLive 4.0 by Adobe, had been
eoquised and would enable the publication of new material with improved visual quality,

encouraged to contact the editor if they thought they might be able to contribute.
Essentially, anything which might be suitable for paper publication could be use
especially visual material.

There were plans for some new and exciting additions to the BPS web presence. These

In addition to the web

: Site, e-mail lists had been set up, which enabled BPS members 10
readily exchange info

rmation about Society matters.

8.3 — FERN VARIETIES No ; a
MENCLATURE ‘ did no
Meet in 1999. SUBCOMMITTEE: The Subcommittee

Item 9- SUBCOMMITTEE (ad hoc) REPORTS:
9.1 - FERN ATLAS SUBCOMMITTEE: No report had been received.

9.2 - SYMPOSIUM 2001 SUBCOMMITTEE: Mr R.G. Ackers, the Chairman, reported that the
core committee of A.C. Jermy, A. Leonard, J.M. Ide and R.G. Ackers had been formed.
However, additional assistance would be required over the coming months. Project plans
and a budget had been produced, the latter showing a prospective turnover of around
£30,000. Some contribution to funding had been sought from English Nature. The first
circular had been produced and distributed, and around 150 recipients had responded to
request the second circular. The scientific programme was under construction. A BPS field
meeting in the Southern Lake District had been scheduled to follow the symposium to
enable delegates to attend should they so wish.

Item 10 - COMMITTEE-APPOINTED OFFICERS AND MANAGERS:

10.1 -BOOKSALES: Mr S. Munyard reported that 1999 had been another busy year. He had
obtained two private collections, which had totalled nearly 600 titles. This had caused a
delay in producing the Booksales list for which he apologised. The possibility of carrying
stock of CD-ROM fern titles was being investigated.

10.2 — MERCHANDISE: Mrs L. Craddock reported that sales in 1999 had increased by 15%
compared to 1998, so were now going in the right direction. She thanked the Committee for
taking on board the possibility of additional items. Polo shirts, tee-shirts, sweat-shirts and
bookmarks were now available. It was possible that mugs and other items would follow.
Hopefully, renewed interest and enthusiasm would result! The merchandising continued to
tun smoothly and Linda was prepared to carry on for another year lugging merchandise
around the country and sending it around the world!

10.3 — PLANT EXCHANGE: Mr R. and Mrs B. Smith reported that the September 1999 list
was better than average, with generous offers of ferns, equisetums and Selaginella to
interest all tastes. Fifty plus members had applied for a copy of the list. Most grateful
thanks were extended to the donors who had contributed admirably and made the scheme
Successful. Anyone with even three or four plants to spare was encouraged to consider
contributing. However, it was not necessary to have ferns to offer in order to participate.

10.4 — SPORE EXCHANGE: Mr B. and Mrs A. Wright reported that the exchange continued
to be a popular service, with 154 requests being received and processed. Of these, 44 were
from non-UK members, affirming the international nature of the exchange. After the main
flush of requests, there had been the anxious wait for fresh stocks to be donated. During the
year, the scheme had been fortunate to receive 397 donations (some taxa being duplicated)
from 40 donors. Each year there were normally 0-30 new taxa to offer and about the same
number were lost from the list.

Organisers were keen to encourage
seem common or mundane to the
be very grateful for it. Also,

members were not expected to send in tens of different taxa. If each aneaee age
Packet this would go a long way to maintaining stocks. However, to be ait, f omeapatt
receive the full extra allocation of ten packets, it was considered that a — oa
different taxa should be donated, although, if someone sent in a couple of gram
Woodsia alpina spores, this rule might be ignored in gratitude!

Mr A.R. Busby reported that some

10.5 — ON OFFICER:
HORTICULTURAL INFORMATI ection of topics on ferns and fern

eight requests for information, covering a wide sel

267

growing, had been received. About half of the requests for information were from non-
members and were addressed to him as Hon. Gen. Secretary. Information required mainly
concerned where to obtain hardy ferns, but there had been one long letter asking for
information on building a fernery and a phone call on restoring a fernery.

Item 11 — REPORTS FROM SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS: The General Secretary
had received no reports and the President invited Group Organisers to comment from the
floor. There was no response; reports had been published in the 1999 Bulletin.

The en bloc adoption of the reports given under items 4 to 11 inclusive was proposed by Mr
J.R. Woodhams and seconded by Mr P.H. Ripley. The proposal was carried unanimously.

Item 12 - CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION: As reported by the General Secretary
under item 4 above, the Committee had felt that some changes to the Constitution were
necessary. The proposed changes had been circulated with the last Bulletin.

The Committee felt it prudent to ask the Society to agree the addition of the words “through

publications, meetings and grants”, to the end of Item 2, OBJECTS, of the Society’s

Constitution, so that it would read: “The objects of the Society are to promote and

encourage the cultivation of ferns and other pteridophytes and to further the study of their

taxonomy, distribution, conservation and ecology through publications, meetings and
ants.”

Although the Membership Secretary and Conservation Officer were attending Committee
Meetings, they had no voting rights. It was felt that this was an anomaly and that the
holders of these offices should be ex-officio full members of the Committee. It was also
decided that the position of holders of Committee Appointments, such as the Booksales and
Spore Exchange Organisers, vis-a-vis the Committee should be made clear. To this end the
following changes had been proposed to Item 3, MANAGEMENT:

i. First Sub-paragraph to be replaced with: “The Officers of the Society shall consist of a
President, up to six Vice-Presidents, a General Secretary, a Treasurer, the Editors of the
Society’s regular publications comprising the Bulletin, the Fern Gazette, the Pteridologist,
the Society’s World Wide Web Site, a Membership Secretary, a Meetings Secretary and a
Conservation Officer. All posts being honorary.”

ii. The last word of the second Sub-paragraph to be replaced with: “Officers of the Society”.
iii. After the second Sub-paragraph insert additional Sub-paragraph as follows: “Any
Holders of Committee appointments, such as Spore Exchange Organiser, Plant Exchange
Organiser, Booksales Organiser, or Archivist, who are not also either an elected Officer of
the Society or an elected Member of the Committee, will be eligible to attend Committee
Meetings but will have no voting rights.”

iv. The fourth sentence of the existing third Sub-paragraph to be amended as follows: aches
“The Honorary General Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, Editors and Meetings Secretary”.
Replace with: “All other Officers of the Society”.

The acceptance of the changes was proposed by Mr A.R. Busby, seconded by Miss
J.M. Camus and carried unanimously.

Item 13 - ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS:

Before beginning the election of officers, the President thanked J.R. Woodhams, who had
come to the end of his term of office as a Vice-President, for his service to the Society.
John had been the Society’s link with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, for many years
before he took early retirement, and for many years he organised the annual BPS meeting
there. With his wife Joan, they provided the afternoon tea at Professor Holttum’s home
when the Professor and his wife were getting on in years and continued to provide tea when

268

we could no longer go ‘across the Green’. As Vice-President he had regularly attended
Committee meetings; his contribution would be missed very much.

The serving Officers of the Society were all eligible for re-election and had indicated their
willingness to stand. It was proposed by S.D. Martinelli and seconded by A.R. Busby, that
the officers be re-elected. The vote was unanimously in favour.

Wg Cdr E.J. Baker and Mrs M.E. Nimmo-Smith were retiring as elected Committee
Members, being the two longest serving members, and Miss R.J. Murphy was resigning
because of eyesight difficulties. The President thanked them for their loyal service and was
especially saddened that Rose Murphy had found it necessary to resign as she had made
very positive contributions at Committee meetings. He wished her all the best for the
future. Mr M.S. Porter, because of the changes to the Constitution agreed at this meeting,
was now an ex officio member of the Committee by virtue of his position as Membership
Secretary. There were already two vacancies on the Committee, so the total number of
vacancies was now six. Two nominations had been received before the meeting: Mr
R.G. Ackers, proposed by M.H. Rickard, seconded by J.M. Ide, and Dr S.D. Martinelli,
proposed by P.J. Acock and seconded by P.H. Ripley. There were no nominations from the
floor and R.G. Ackers and S.D. Martinelli were elected unanimously.

Item 14 ~ ELECTION OF AUDITORS: R.G. Ackers had offered his resignation as an
auditor and the President thanked him for his service during the past four years. P.H. Ripley
had indicated his willingness to continue as an auditor and was duly re-elected. There was
no nomination to replace R.G. Ackers.

Item 15 - ANY OTHER BUSINESS:

a. The President congratulated Dr Mary Gibby on her appointment as Director of Science at
the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh and hoped that members would still see her at
meetings.

b. The President, on behalf of the Society, expressed his thanks to Dr id ocamond
associates for arranging the meeting at Chelsea Physic Garden. There being no further
business, he thanked members for attending and declared the meeting closed at
approximatel ; ;

Pp ately 15.15 hours Jennifer M. Ide

Hon. Gen. Secretary

Notes to the Accounts

1. The Society had the following stocks of books at 31.12.1999
Names and their Meanings 173 (188), Cultivation sousate
History of British Pteridology 834 (841), BPS Extracts eee

. The accounts reflect the subscriptions actually received in the yo
The actual number of subscribers was very similar in 1998 and :

9.97) at 31.12.1999.

(1998 stocks in brackets): Fern
tion of British Ferns 0 (113),
437 (439).

No

ee)

. BPS Booksales had assets of £5,738.33 (£5,15 ;
. The Centenary Fund had 177 (179) copies of A World of Ferns at 3 1.12.1999.
: ; : ible value:

e Society also possesses the following assets with less tangl :
Back Se of ae Bulletin, Fern Gazette and Pteridologist valued at approximately £3,000.
Merchandise valued at approximately £1,00V.

ciety made one grant from the Centenary Fund of £250 to W.D. Speer to attend the

00 j : 196).
1999 International Bracken Conference in Manchester (see 1999 Bulletin 5(4): 96)
ew Zealand using the BPS credit card

nn

hs

7. Several foreign participants paid for the BPS trip to N
facility. This resulted in no overall cost to the BPS.

269

FINANCIAL STATEMENT AS AT 31 DECEMBER 1999

ORDINARY ACCOUNT
(1998) 1999
£10,893.50 Subscriptions £12,937.93
961.93 Interest 752.00
16.15 Booksales #
4.00 Spore Exchange
202.00 Merchandise 298.75
- Plant Sale 18.00
New Zealand Trip 3,606.72
£12,077.58 TOTAL INCOME £17,613.40
E :
2,901.69 Pteridologist 2,160.77
1,140.80 Gazette 4,013.87
3,232.65 Bulletin 2,434.24
623.6 inting & Stationery 310.03
750.36 Administration & Postage 1,026.99
24.10 Subscriptions to Societies 2
118.50 Plant & Spore Exchanges 135.87
931.50 Meetings 285.00
75.50 Merchandise -
70.00 Mapping Project -
- New Zealand Trip 3,606.72
1,000.00 ooksales i
69.58 Special Interest Groups 49.17
£10,938.33 TOTAL EXPENDITURE £14,062.86
1,139.25 BALANCE for 1999 3,550.54
13,451.42 Brought forward from 1998 14,590.67
£14,590.67 Carried f 1 at 31.12.1999 £18,141.21
CENTENARY FUND
5,736.83 Brought forward from 1998 6,171.08
410.25 Interest 318.06
- Grants (250.00)
24.00 World of Ferns 16.00
£6,171.08 Carried forward at 31.12.1999 £6,255.14
GREENFIELD FUND
1,622.45 Brought forward from 1998 1,738.47
116.02 Interest 89.60
£1,738.47 Carried forward at 31.12.1999 £1,828.07
PUBLICATIONS ACCOUNT
3,712.60 Brought Forward from 1998 4,539.72
265.49 Interest 233.98
274.58 Offprints 66.52
68.40 Special Publication No. 2 50.80
126.00 Special Publication No. 3 378.80
44.40 Special Publication No. 4 42.60
48.25 Special Publication No. 5 20.25
£4,539.72 Carried forward at 31.12.1999 £5,332.67

270

DORYOPTERIS — A GRANT FROM THE CENTENARY FUND

I would like to convey my gratitude to the Trustees of the British Pteridological Society’s
Centenary Fund for the grant in 2000 which helped me to cover some of the expenses for
my fieldwork in Brazil.

I have been working on my PhD project entitled: ‘A systematic hb of the genus
Doryopteris J.Sm. (Pteridaceae, Pteridophyta)’, under the guidance of Dr A. Culham (The
University of Reading), Dr Mary Gibby (Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh) and Miss
Josephine Camus (The Natural History Museum, London). Doryopteris is primarily a
Brazilian genus: 21 of the 22 neotropical species are found in Brazil, ten of which are
endemic. Most studies which refer to Doryopteris are limited in scope to the general
systematic aspects of the genus. The difficulty in establishing reasonable subgeneric limits
in Doryopteris means that some species have been retained in the genus for convenience or
are distinguished by only a few critical characters. This unsettled taxonomy is attributed to
using only traditional morphological criteria.

In my study, phylogenetically informative molecular data will be assembled to reconstruct
the phylogeny and revise the problematic taxonomy of Doryopteris, using also cytology and
morphology.

It took some months for me to arrange my trip and plan the fieldwork. I had to prepare a
budget, use references and information from existing herbarium collections to plan the
itinerary, obtain permission to collect, assemble materials for preparation of the samples,
make arrangements with the guides and for car rental. This was to be my second field trip in
south-east Brazil, around Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

There were, however, factors beyond my control that left me feeling quite anxious. La Nifia
phenomenon had caused havoc in large parts of Brazil: the constant rain caused widespread
floods, many roads had been closed and thousands of people became homeless. As a result,
Thad to postpone my fieldwork to June 2000.

Once again, early in 2000, I made all the preparations. Fortunately I was awarded a
‘conservation’ return air ticket by British Airways. However, I was still worried about the
weather, as there was a forecast that the winter would be the driest for five years.
Unfortunately, this proved to be correct and, once again, plans had to be amended. We
travelled about 3,000km searching for Doryopteris. As a result of the unusually dry winter
we travelled through a landscape that was difficult to recognise: everything had turned
brown, the suffering of nature (drought) made worse by fires. Most species of Doryopteris
are rupicolous, i.e. they grow in rock oe and as the streams dried up, so did the ferns.

Most botanists worry about drying specimens in
the field, but I had to soak the plants to get the
fronds to open out again before I could press
them to make decent herbarium specimens.

I should, however, give the happy news: despite
the adverse conditions I found about seven
species of Doryopteris, some of which I had not
collected previously.

The Fund helped to cover some of my expenses
during this trip. I would also like to take this
opportunity to thank Dr Jefferson Prado and
P. Labiak for their help during this fieldwork.

Jovita Cislinski Yesilyurt

SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS

FOREIGN HARDY FERN GROUP A.R. Busby
Once again I must report that I have not been able to get the next edition of the Newsletter
out. Several new members have expressed an interest during the year and their names have
been added to the list. I will do my best to get something out in the near future. If anyone
would be interested in taking over as Organiser of the Foreign Hardy Fern Group / Editor of
the Newsletter I would be pleased for them to contact me.

Enquiries to: A.R. Busby, 16 Kirby Corner Road, Canley, Coventry CV4 8GD.
E-mail: ForeignHardyFerns @eBPS.org.uk

TREE-FERN GROUP A.C, Wardlaw

since the start of the Group in 1995, with
the seventh expected by the end of 2000.
Most of the Newsletter material so far has
dealt with the cultivation and winter-
protection of tree-ferns, and with visits to
tree-ferny places. For the Convenor the
principal problem is persuading t
membership to submit pictures, or
accounts of their experiences with tree-
ferns, for the Newsletter, but hopefully
this will improve with time. There is also
the question of whether Newsletter
articles about tree-ferns would be better
lace or reproduced, i

=
oO

Photo: J.M. Ide

Cyathea medullaris in New Zealand Britain should be aware that we are

; privileged in our access to mature
specimens of several species of tree-ferns, imported from the Southern Hemisphere. In the
USA, by contrast, the importation of trunk-size tree-ferns, e.g. from Australia, is virtually

‘oie -ferns, not only as a_ sustainable
enterprise in their native lands, but also in the ‘global village’ beyond. Contributions to
these questions can be expected to emerge from the BPS Tree-Fern Special Interest Group.

Enquiries and contributions to Alastair C. Wardlaw, 92 Drymen Road, Bearsden, Glasgow
G61 2SY. E-mail: TreeFerns @eBPS.org.uk

FILMY FERN GROUP S.J. Munyard
Unfortunately, due to other commitments, the Newsletter for the Filmy Fern Group is still
im preparation. It should be completed in the next few weeks.

Anyone else interested in

; joining this group should contact Steve Munyard at 234 Harold
Road, Hastings, East Suss

ex TN35 5NG. E-mail: ForeignHardyFerns @eBPS.org.uk.

272

CONSTITUTION
OF THE BRITISH PTERIDOLOGICAL SOCIETY

As adopted at the AGM 27 September 1961 (with amendments 1972, 1975, 1983 and 2000)

NAME The Society shall be called “The British Pteridological Society”.

OBJECTS The objects of the Society are to promote and encourage the cultivation of
ferns and other pteridophytes and to further the study of their taxonomy, distribution,
conservation and ecology through publications, meetings and grants. (March 2000)

MANAGEMENT The Officers of the Society shall consist of a President, up to six
Vice-Presidents, a General Secretary, a Treasurer, the Editors of the Society’s regular
publications comprising the Bulletin, the Fern Gazette, the Pteridologist, the Society's
World Wide Web Site, a Membership Secretary, a Meetings Secretary and a
Conservation Officer. All posts being honorary. (October 1972, March 2000)

The Management of the Society shall be in the hands of a Committee consisting of not
more than ten elected members with the addition of the Officers of the Society. Five
members, of which one will be an Officer, shall constitute a quorum. The Committee
shall have the power to co-opt additional members for special purposes, including
Assistants to the Honorary General Secretary, Honorary Treasurer and Editors of
Publications. (October 1972, March 2000)

Any Holders of Committee appointments, such as Spore Exchange Organiser, Plant
Exchange Organiser, Booksales Organiser, or Archivist, who are not also either an
elected Officer of the Society or an elected Member of the Committee, will be eligible
to attend Committee Meetings but will have no voting rights. (March 2000)

The President shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting and remain in office for
three years and on retirement shall not be eligible for immediate re-election. All Vice-
Presidents shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting and remain in office for six
years. On retirement they shall not be eligible for re-election. All other Officers of the

Society shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting and remain in office until the
be eligible for re-election.
ing, and shall

eligible for re-election with the exc
who shall not be eligible for re-elec
there being more than two members of the Committee wh
election, the names of those to retire shall be decided by
during the year, such a vacancy may be filled by Committee. (
000)

A resolution in writing signed and agreed to by all members of the Committee for the
time being in the United Kingdom shall be as valid and effectual as if it had been
passed at a meeting of the Committee duly called and held, and may consist of several
documents in the like form each signed by one or more members of the Committee.

of the Committee must normally be received by
one days before the Annual General Meeting.

lot. Should a vacancy occur
February 1983, March

Nominations for Officers and members
the Honorary General Secretary twenty-

MEETINGS The Annual General Meeting of the Society shall be held at such time
and place as the Committee may decide for the purpose of passing accounts, electing

273

te

i

—

9°

a

oo
—]

—s

Officers and the Committee and transacting the general business of the Society.
General and field meetings shall be held at the discretion of the Committee.

An Extraordinary General meeting shall be called by the Honorary General Secretary
within thirty days of receiving a request in writing of the Committee or of not less than
twenty members stating the purpose for which such a meeting is required.

At least twenty-one days notice of any General Meeting shall be given to all members.

NOTICES The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting to, or the non-receipt
of notice of a meeting by, any member shall not invalidate any proceedings or
resolutions at any meeting of the Society or any Committee thereof except in the case
of removal from membership.

ORDINARY MEMBERSHIP AND SUBSCRIPTIONS The annual subscription
payable by members shall be payable in advance, and due on the First of January in
each year, or on the election of the members. The rates of subscription shall be fixed by
a General Meeting from time to time. (October 1975)

HONORARY MEMBERSHIP The Committee may elect any person or persons to
Honorary Membership of the Society. Honorary Members shall be entitled to all the
privileges of membership, but shall not be liable for payment of any subscription.

REMOVAL FROM MEMBERSHIP Any member failing to pay his subscription
within six calendar months of its becoming due shall be liable to have his name
removed from the List of Members of this Society.

y member whose conduct in the opinion of the Committee is prejudicial to the
interests of the Society may be removed from membership by a two-thirds majority
vote of those present at a meeting of the Committee on the Agenda of which the words
“Removal of a Member” shall have appeared; provided no member may be so removed
unless due notice has been sent to the member of the intention of the Committee to
proceed under this rule and of the nature of the charges made and an opportunity has
been afforded of answering such charges to the satisfaction of the Committee. A
member so removed shall forfeit any claim upon the Society.

AWARDS The Committee may make awards in respect of plants of outstanding
Scientific or horticultural interest.

- ALTERATION TO RULES This Constitution may be altered as follows:

Any proposal for alteration or addition to this Constitution shall be in writing, and shall
be signed by two members, and be deposited with the Honorary General Secretary not
less than thirty days before the Annual General Meeting. Such alteration or addition
Shall be included in the Agenda of that meeting and circulated to all members and shall
not be carried unless the votes of two-thirds of the members present at the meeting are
Cast in favour.

- DISSOLUTION The Society may be dissolved by a vote of at least three-quarters

majority of those Present and voting at an Extraordinary General Meeting called for that
purpose and if an effective resolution for dissolution is passed the surplus funds and

Property of the Society shall be disposed of to an agreed charitable organisation of
similar interest.

I74

BRITISH PTERIDOLOGICAL SOCIETY SAFETY CODE

In common with other scientific and natural history societies, the BPS has drawn up a
safety code for its meetings, in particular field meetings. Every meeting leader will have a
copy for consultation by participants but every participant should read the code and take the
appropriate responsible action for each meeting he or she attends.

PARTICIPATION IN MEETINGS The BPS will, through the meeting leader, at the
beginning of the meeting, draw the attention of participants to the points below. It is the
duty of all participants to practise extreme care and common sense and not to take risks.
The following points are particularly important in taking ultimate responsibility for your
own safety:

. Ensure that you are adequately clothed and equipped.

. Never leave the main party without notifying the leader of your plans.

. Pay particular attention to the hazards of the terrain and their potential danger, as a result
of your actions, to others. For example, be careful not to dislodge loose stones and
boulders.

Do not rock-climb without experience and the proper equipment.

Do not damage walls, fences, hedges, gates, etc.

Leave gates open/shut as the party finds them.

Take care not to start a fire.

. Familiarise yourself with the procedure to adopt in the event of an accident in the field.

wn

SONI DAMS

CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT Always carry windproof and waterproof outer clothing

i i i tances, wellingtons. All

clothing should be suitable for the job (e.g. jeans not recommended) and for the worst

potential weather. Carry sufficient food and drink for the excursion, with some extra in case

of emergency. A first-aid kit is also advisable.

In mountains, the following are necessary:

1. Two warm, long-sleeved sweaters of wool or similar material.

2. Properly fitting walking or climbing boots with commando-type or Vibram soles, worn
over suitable woollen socks. Footwear should be waterproof but wellingtons should not

e Worn.

. Atucksack with spare sweater and (if not being w om) k/cag

4. A whistle, compass, maps, torch, first-aid kit.

5. A survival bag if more than ¥2-hour from the nearest inhabited place.

At all outdoor meetings, it is worth considering carrying an emergency survival blanket.

They can be obtained, for approximately £3, from retail outlets selling outdoor leisure

clothing and equipment. They are very light (c.85 g) and occupy very little space.

PROCEDURE IN THE EVENT OF AN ACCIDENT IN THE FIELD First-aid must
be rendered at once, and medical and relief help should be sought if necessary. eee
of exposure is almost always possible through adequate clothing, equipment ~ sie oe
but if a case is suspected the initial treatment is additional warm clothing and a win ae
Or waterproof outer garment, plus ingestion of a source of rapidly absorbed food, such as
Sugar or glucose in solid or liquid form, preferably hot liquid.

THE INTERNATIONAL DISTRESS CODEINMOUNTAINS =
Six long flashes/blasts/shouts/waves in succession, repeated at |-minute interva s.

: ‘ =
hii following publication may also prove helpful: Jackson. J. et al. sigh ae tgpside :
Mountains. Obtainable from the British Mountaineering Council, Crawford House,

Manchester University, Booth Street East, Manchester, M13 9RZ
ritish Bryological Society)

1 A anver_troiisers.

uve

ue

(Adapted from the Safety Code of the B
215

eBPS

The BPS has recently been making important advances in the way it uses new
communications technology to further its aims and run the Society. In addition to the web
site, which we started in 1997, we now increasingly use e-mail, along with other computer
and Internet facilities in the everyday running of the Society. Many members will be aware
of much of this, but we thought it worth summarising what’s been going on to make sure
everyone was up to date. We call these initiatives eBPS (electronic BPS).

I make no apology for encouraging the BPS into all this new technology — I see it as the
means of keeping the Society alive and relevant. Like most of you I expect, I love the
timeless, peaceful qualities of ferns, I also love to feel the fine ink printing of a Victorian
fern . I see no reason why the BPS, which has spent most of its time in the 20th
century, should not also be firmly rooted in both the 19th and the 21st.

DOMAIN NAMES AND E-MAIL ADDRESSES

The main BPS web site is now accessible by the name www.eBPS.org.uk. Although most
of the BPS site is still physically located on the Internet server computer at the Natural
History Museum, the use of this name, or URL, means that we can quote and publish
‘www.eBPS.org.uk’ in the knowledge that this will always be our address, irrespective of
how we might physically locate the web site in the future. It’s also rather easier to
remember and type than ‘www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/bps’.

Having the domain name eBPS.org.uk also enables the Society to have its own permanent
e-mail addresses for the various officers, groups and activities. These can be redirected to
the relevant personal e-mail addresses of the people currently responsible. Again, this
enables us to publish those e-mail addresses in journals, etc., knowing that they will stay up
to date. For example we have ‘Secretary@eBPS.org.uk’ (redirected to Jennifer Ide) and
‘Spores @eBPS.org.uk’ (redirected to Barry Wright).

We have also registered a number of other domain names, mainly for future use. It's
important on the Internet to have distinctive and memorable names, especially where we
Want to attract the attention of people who know little or nothing about either the BPS ot
pteridophytes. It also makes it easier to structure the public access to our web site(s), by
giving distinct names to sub-sections of the whole, e.g. ‘www.FernGazette.co.uk’ points t0
the Fern Gazette front page ‘www.eBPS.org.uk/gazette.htm’. We also have a ‘dot com’
address for use when eBPS gets into e-commerce(!) — more of that later.

THE BPS WEs SITE

The BPS web site, ‘Fern World Wide Web’ has now grown to 45 pages, with 256 files and
about 10Mbytes of storage. We have been receiving an average of 20 visitors a day, whic
may not sound many but is quite good for a small specialist society. Now that the new
eBPS.org.uk address is established, we will increase our efforts to ‘advertise’ our presence
and ensure that the Internet search engines reach us.

We have tried hard to produce a good quality site, making it attractive and ‘professional’,
avoiding the all-too-frequent gaudy colours and flashing images seen elsewhere on the
Internet. We do however, make use of up-to-date web site technology where appropriate
and have in place visit tracking software, to give us a wide range of statistics, such as oi
many People are visiting, what type of screen display they are using and which other web
m. We also have a notification system to enable visitors to recelve
i telling them when we have updated the site. Other features currently under on
opefully soon to be implemented include a full-text search for the whole site am

1 . *
eR translation. Perhaps surprisingly, most of these facilities are free to the so
apart from time if one were to cost that up!)

276

However, what really counts on the World Wide Web is content rather than technique so
we are trying hard to increase the information value of the site. The site currently includes a
large amount of Society information, and items such as abstracts from the Fern Gazette,
extracts from BPS reports of about 100 years ago, pteridophyte images, ‘Where to see
Ferns’ and links to other pteridological web sites. Other things currently planned include
basic fern ‘information sheets’, a book list (with links to on-line sales) and a revised
‘Where to see Ferns’ with pictures and maps.

SOME OTHER INITIATIVES

There are two e-mail message distribution lists: BPS and BPS-Committee. These enable
participants to send a message to the list, which is then automatically distributed to all the
other members. This can be very useful as the equivalent of a newsletter or sending out
notices. The BPS list is open to all BPS members for matters of general Society interest (go
to “‘www.onelist.com/community/BPS’ to subscribe) and the BPS-Committee one is for the
committee to easily communicate in-between formal meetings. Other lists could easily be
set up, e.g. for regional groups or special interest groups, if there was a demand.

We are looking at the possibility of scanning some of the Society’s past publications and
records. These could then be made available on the web site, or sold on CD-ROM. This
would make them much more accessible and also ensure that archive copies exist.

Increasingly, the preparation of the printed journals (and other Society publications) is done
electronically, using word-processing and page setting programs. As well as cutting time
scales and costs, this ensures that the final publication is exactly as the editor intended and
the existence of an electronic copy means that it can be used for search and indexing and is
available for publication on CD-ROM or the Internet.

HOw To GaIN ACCESS

Today, everyone can get access to the World Wide Web and e-mail for, at most, the cost of
a cheap rate telephone call. Many service providers (JSPs) now offer the basic subscription
for free. Even if you don’t have a PC, you can still access the World Wide Web and e-mail
at a public facility such as an ‘Internet Café’ or a public library (where use of the terminal is
usually free). Help is usually available at such places. If anyone has serious difficulties
getting on-line, please get in touch (by ’phone!).

How To HELP
All of the things discussed above need time and effort to implement. In particular, the web
site depends upon the steady supply of new material to keep it up-to-date and ee a
Visitors. Many (if not all) members could probably contribute something. pawn ys
anything about pteridology, growing or botany, text or pictures, which is of gis —
quality’, can probably be used somewhere on the site. A web site has a number « sini ~
advantages over traditional printed publications, e.g. there are no serious size imi : s,
either in total or for individual items, it can be frequently updated and vagy 98 ce
illustrations are very cheaply published. All of this means that items that rei yeas ~ <i
to publish on paper, can be very easily dealt with on the web site. Please thin
you could contribute. =
One role we are particularly keen to fill is that of desk-top-publishing / peel “a
the Society’s journals and other publications. We need someone — a li soe sie
ability to help with the desk-top-publishing aspects. This may i ae i 3 =
Teally is — if you’re comfortable with a word-processor, such as MS Word, y
j a

If anyone needs any further explanation abut how they could help. or ee tans .
about it, please contact me, or in the case of the desk-top-publishing, Josep

Anthony Pigott

277

OBITUARIES

Prof. WARREN HERBERT WAGNER, Jr 1920 — 2000

Herb Wagner was born in Washington, DC,
on 29th August 1920. At that time
Washington was still a small city, and parks
and countryside were close at hand. Herb
became interested in the natural sciences at
an earl . He came to know several
government and Smithsonian _ scientists
ty)

V. Morton (Smithsonian _ pteridologists),
Edgar T. Wherry (Department of Agriculture

Clark (Smithsonian lepidopterist). He
completed his undergraduate work at the
University of Pennsylvania in 1942.

Service as a navigator in the U.S. Navy's air
force allowed him time to collect plants and
butterflies and the routes he flew gave him
access to many places. He made a few
collections in South America and the
Caribbean, but spent most of his time in the
Pacific, especially on Guam. Battles had
scarcely come to an end on some Pacific
Prof. W. Herb Wagner, Jr 1920 — 2000 islands, and he found that butterflies were
greatly attracted to the corpses that lay
beyond the defence perimeters of the American installations. Although he could easily have
been shot by a sniper, a butterfly net was the equivalent of waving a white flag and kept
Herb safe when collecting either butterflies or plants. He gave his butterfly collections 10
the Smithsonian Institution and his plant collections to the University of California,
Berkeley, and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

photo; J.T. Mickel

After the war, Herb continued his university education, completing his PhD at the
University of California in 1950. He was officially a student of Prof. Lincoln Constance,
but Edwin B. Copeland, who had retired to Berkeley from the Philippines before the wal,
was his principal mentor. His dissertation was on the systematics of the Hawaiian endemic
— Diellia (Aspleniaceae). During his time at Berkeley, he met and married Flo
Ai lp who was completing a PhD dissertation on the morphology of the Delesseriacea®
( hodophyta). It is said that their courtship can be traced by reading specimen labels in the
University of California herbarium. r

ase ie Post-doctoral year at Harvard University and the Gray pear me
University He ss om a Michigan, where Herb had aap eee
ani wot) Seria BPS in 1964. Herb taught courses in spring flora, plant Se
advising graduate C a ha vied owner, whether lecturing underpny
teaching. He . or leading field trips. Herb was never happier than “ -
tebe of mee eo or co-chairman of 45 doctoral committees and - pre
of Botany (or Biol ) other graduate committees, certainly a record in the Dep
Ology, as it later became), if not in the entire University.

hen he was
d as 4
ent

278

At the same time, Herb maintained a busy research schedule, with emphasis on the
taxonomy of Botrychium and the pteridophytes of Hawaii. With such an encompassing and
inquiring mind, he investigated many phenomena in diverse plant groups as well as in
butterflies. From his interest in phylogeny and evolution, he developed the ground plan
divergence index and its visual representation, which has become known as a Wagner tree.
He published more than 400 scientific papers.

Herb was the director of the University’s Matthaei Botanical Gardens from 1966 to 1971.
He was interested in outreach, in pointing out the importance of the biological sciences to
everyone’s life, and he often gave talks to citizen groups. He was honoured many times by
the University and by scientific societies and was elected to membership in the National
Academy of Sciences in 1985.

His hobbies were butterflies, especially the taxonomically difficult little blue skippers, and
mineralogy, probably as a result of his early contacts with J.F. Gates Clark and Edgar

erry. Florence and he displayed his best mineralogical specimens at home, and every
year’s Christmas card was a colour drawing of a different butterfly.

Although he officially retired in 1991, Herb continued his activities much as before, albeit
slowed slightly by heart and circulatory difficulties. Herb died on 8th January 2000 at the
age of 79. He is survived by his wife of 51 years and by his children Warren and Margaret,
and by two grandsons, Reid and Haven. A memorial was held on April 2nd that nearly
overflowed a large auditorium in the Rackham School of Graduate Studies on the
University of Michigan campus. By any measure, he was the principal American

pteridologist of the latter half of the twentieth century.
David Lellinger

WARREN ‘HERB’ WAGNER — A PERSONAL APPRECIATION
When I took up the post of Pteridologist at the then British Museum (Natural History) in
1958, I automatically received the many reprints sent to my predecessor, A.H.G. Alston.
Among them were stimulating papers from a Professor in Ann Arbor, Herb Wagner, with
whom I soon struck up a correspondence. In 1964 the International Botanical Congress was
hosted at Edinburgh and although not an official delegate from the Museum, I was
encouraged to fly up for a day to attend a mini-symposium on pteridology at which both
Herb and Irene Manton were speaking.

At a coffee break after his talk, Herb came over to me and characteristically hailed me as if
an old friend, accepting me as a member of the international fern fraternity (small as it was)
in spite of the fact that I was a ‘greenhorn’ who was only just coming to grips with the vast
diversity of ferns worldwide. I remember a lunch in a basement in George Street where

of. Manton and Herb argued the merits of plant nomenclature that reflected the auto- or
alloploid origins of the Asplenium and Dryopteris species th
evaluating. Nothing was resolved — nor has ever been and the |
was then. At the Quillwort Conference in Douglas, Georgia, in
absence was sadly lamented), the subject was again debated by
generations.

at they or their students were
topic is still as valid now as it
March 2000 (where Herb’s
Herb’s students of two

described as spreading far beyond the geograp
in North America. Herb later wrote to me about the
“would be surprised if [we] did not discover these things

excursion and re-
growing over a wider range than

a9

the sporophyte”. I am ashamed to say we failed to take up the challenge seriously and it was
Don Farrar himself, on a visit to Manchester University in 1989, who recognised the
filamentous gametophyte of the Killarney fern near Derwent Water whilst looking for
gametophytes of Hymenophyllum tunbrigense.

Over the next 30 years Herb (and his wife Florence, also a botanist of repute) kept in touch
and visited London and my home in Otford. I visited them in Ann Arbor in 1970 for several
days and again in 1995. On both occasions we went hunting Dryopteris hybrids in
delightful Michigan woods and although in 1995 Herb took ferning at a more leisurely
pace, his enthusiasm was just as strong and stimulating — worth the flying visit for a three
day weekend! I had hoped to persuade Herb and Florence to come and hunt Botrychium in
Europe, but it was not to be.

Clive Jermy

Prof. RAMON RIBA 1934 - 1999
Ramon Riba was born on 24th April 1934 in Mexico City; he joined the BPS in 1998.
Ramon was Professor at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (1955-1991) and
Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa (1974-1999) in the Department of
Bj

coeditor of the pteridophyte volume (vol. 1) of Flora Mesoamericana. He was one of the
first people to study this group of plants in Mexico.

He was patient with all his students and his office was open to them all day — no
appointment was necessary. He was highly disciplined, being demanding in his work, in the
presentation of his papers and in his correspondence. He wrote and spoke well and
frequently liked to explain the meaning of a term or to improve the accuracy of the
manuscripts that his students presented to him. Ramon had a well-developed sense of
friendship and solidarity with his collaborators and pupils, and he did not tolerate any kind
of dishonesty on the part of those associated with him. He was a very special person who
liked to make jokes and laugh at them himself; he also had a beautiful voice that all enjoyed
on field trips or parties. He died in his home of a heart attack on 13th December 1999.

Leticia Pacheco

Dr JOSEF HOLUB 1930 - 1999

Josef Holub began his scientific career at the Department of Botany, Charles University,

Prague, but most of his life was devoted to work at the Institute of Botany, Prihonice.

Among other duties, he was Editor-in-chief of Preslia and President of the Czech Botanical
ociety.

His studies embraced the taxonomy and nomenclature of several vascular plant families but
it is his work on pteridophytes, especially Lycopodiophyta, that we may remember most. e
Was a great ‘splitter’, grouping many species into ‘microgenera’ on intuition rather than
through monographic studies. In Lycopodiaceae for instance, he recognised eleven genera
where most botanists would now accept four or five. However, he did jolt many botanists
‘out of a groove’ in seeing these larger, often ancient, genera in a new, phylogenetic, light.
He had a sound understanding of nomenclatural rules and a good command of English,
both when reading and writing, and his case for understanding both Newman’s and
Wollaston’s concepts of species in relation to Dryopteris borreri [Newman] me
pseudomas [Lastrea Wollaston} was thorough and well explained in print [Folia Gegue
Phytotax. (Praha) 2: 329-332. 1967], bringing the issue to the attention of British botanists.

280

Josef Holub visited Britain in 1967 at the invitation of the Flora Europaea Committee and I
was pleased to meet him. In spite of working under austere conditions during the
communist regime in Czechoslovakia, he was a good correspondent and welcomed warmly
any who got permission to visit him.

Clive Jermy

Wing Cdr ERIC BAKER 1923 — 2000
It is with regret that the death of Eric Baker on 12th August 2000 has to be reported.
Eric joined our Society in 1993 with his wife, Rita, though he had been out on field trips
with the Leeds & District group prior to that. After becoming a member he also made
regular trips, accompanied by Rita, with the North West group as well as participating in
various National field and indoor meetings. The Leeds group used to man a stand at a local
féte in Harrogate to promote the Society and to sell a few plants to raise funds, and Eric
always drove over from his home near Clitheroe to help man the stand for three or four
hours. He also brought some very good plants for sale.
He became an avid collector of garden ferns as his knowledge of these plants increased and
his garden was a joy to behold. Everything he planted seemed to grow to perfection.
Eric was elected to the Committee in 1995 and he also served as minutes secretary, a task
which requires a good deal of patience. Eric will be greatly missed by the Society and
especially by the two regional groups to which he was certainly a great asset. I personally
am saddened to lose such a good friend and colleague. We extend our condolences to Rita.
J.H. Bouckley

BETSY KOHLER 1934 — 2000
Betsy Kohler became a member of the Society after visiting Southport Flower Show in
1991. Members of the Leeds and District group will be particularly saddened by the death
of this very popular member. Betsy was regularly seen at National as well as Group
meetings and will be greatly missed by many Society members, especially those new to the
world of ferns, as she had a unique method of describing the intricate differences between
Various species.

She was very keen on sailing and during a boating holiday on the Clyde there was an
involuntary gybe which caused her to fall and hit her head. Betsy suffered injuries from
Which she died on 6th October 2000. Our sympathies extend to her three sons and one

daughter.
cade J.H. Bouckley

IN MEMORIAM
We were also sorry to learn of the death of the following members and other
Mr Anthony Marriage of Lyme Regis who joined the Society in 1986.
Mr Richard Regan of Derby who joined the Society in 1995.
Mrs G. Soltau of Birkenhead who joined the Society in 1997.
Mr Jeffrey Thomas of Hinckley who joined the Society in 1997. ‘
Dr Charles H. Lamoureux, Professor and Director of the Lyon Arboretum, Honolulu, Hawaii.
Mr Jim Lord of Austwick who had a fine collection of ferns and was well known to some
members,

pteridologists:

281

MEMBERSHIP LIST: ADDITIONS AND AMENDMENTS
NEW MEMBERS

~new members 1999; * new members 2000, ** new members 2001; # members rejoined 2000
* Amey, Mr M.G., 22 Railway Place, Hertford, Herts. SG13 7BS
Andrews, Mr S. C., 199 Roman Road, East Ham, London E6 3SJ
Barlow, Mr H.W. B., Oaklands, Thurnham Lane, Bearsted, Maidstone, Kent ME14 4PL
Bell, Dr G.T., 8 Mains River, Erskine, Renfrewshire PA8 7SP, Scotland
Blackaller, Mr S.A., 4 Drayton Road, Manadon, Plymouth, Devon PLS 3ES
Blesi :

Corbett, Mr A., West Park, Lower Anderton Road, te Torpoint, Cornwall PL10 1DT
Coudret, Dr C., 35 Rue Riquet, Toulouse 3100, Fra:

Criddle, Mrs M.V., 5 Storeys Lane, Burgh Le Mar. oh Rete Lincs. PE24 5LR

Cross, Mr N. tA | Forest Edge, Buckhurst Hill, Essex IG9 SAA

Davies, Mr D., Ty’r Ysgol, Rhandirmwyn, Llanymddyfri, Sir Gaerfyrddin SA20 OPA, Wales
Dickens, Mr J fay 79 rapa) Road, Kidderminster, Worcestershire DY 11

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*

ar, -R.H., Hendre, Abererch, Pwllheli, Gwynedd, Wales
Sele Prof. 1 A., 19 - klenburgh oat uare, London WCIN
.W.,

* &
*

Faulkner, Mr J.M., 314 Beach Hill Road, ae. NH 03229, USA
Fenwick, Mr J.D., ‘Stonehouse, Arthington Lane, Pool-In-Wharfedale, West Yorks. LS21 1JZ
Fernando, Dr MLB. HH. Peragas Handiya Road, Ulhitiyawa, Wennappuwa, Sri Lanka
Figueiredo, Dr E., R. Manuel Murias 7 ~ 1 FRT, 1500 - 418 Lisboa, Portugal
Forrester, Mr D.J., 19 Idmiston Sq., Worcester Park, Surrey KT4

hullam, Mrs M.P., 5 Beech Drive, Cromer Road, North Walshaw, Norfolk NR28 OBZ
Goodwin, Mr D., 128 Shay Lane, Walton, Wakefield, West free WF2 6LB
Grantham, Mr M.A., 1254 64th St, Emeryville, CA 94608 - 1105, USA
Gray, Mr P.J., White Knights, Belle Grove Place, Spital Soe Newcastle-Upon-Tyne,

Tyne and Wear NE2 2 4LH

Green, Mr MLL., 80 Landor Road, Whi tnash, Leamington Spa, Warwicks. CV31 2JY

arris, Mr N. & Mrs S.T., Woodla nds, Blinder ake, Cockermouth, Cumbria CA13 0QJ
Haughton, lions ‘Fernleigh’, 75 Sunnybank Road, Griffithstown, Pontypool, Gwent NP4

* & ee & He He

* 2
=

*

*

SLN, Wale
Henderson, Miss A.L., 39 St Andrews Road, Collegefields, seeder Shropshire SY3 6BH
Higgs, Mrs P.A., 15 Davis Road, Willenhall, W. Midlands WV
Hilsden, Dr E., Hafod-y-Bryn, Llanyre, Llandrindod, Powys LDi 6EA, Wales
Hughes, Mr RP., 218 Mashie Drive, Nacogdoches, TX 75964, USA
Hughes, Mr E.O., 17 Gillian Drive, Rhyl, Denbighshire LL18 4TB, Wales
» Hartley Wintney, Hook, Hants. ts 8AQ
m DL2

« &

Jones, Ms E. , Poplars Farm, 19 Si ie Street, Checonbs: anbury, Oxon. OX17 2JR
Kingstone, Mr L. 6 Coltbridge Vale, Edinburgh, Mid Cobia EN12 6AG, Scotland
Kohout, Mr C., Kurzer Weg 3, Prietitz, D - 01920, Germa
, Beri ringen/Mersch, L-7591, Luxembourg
ea »MrD.A., 4 Bramley Close, Swinton, Manchester M27 0DR
alt Mr P.E., 12 Rooks Clo ose, Roundswell, Barnstaple, Devon EX31 3SR

ws, Dr H., 75 Wellesley Street, South Hobart ve tp 7004, Australia
Lewis, Mr T., 43 Pretoria Road, Romford, Esse
Sad Mr P. & Ms J. Hopton, 6 Mac ackey Pieisrnt a Barnsley, S. Yorkshire $72 ues
eccalie | Miss IM., 155 Telford Road, Murray, East Kilbride G75 ODW, Scotlan
rie i 9 Tummel Falls Drive ace. Virginia 20136, USA
meg ae 319 Henry Street, Heiter. | NY 13350, USA
cles so 96 Elfindale Road, Herne Hill, London SE24 9NW
ea , 39 Hurst Lane, Bollington, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 5LT
en Me Mr. , 425 Rg 6 Ouest, Evain, Québec JOZ 1Y , Canada

otek , 64 Dunbabin Road, Childwall, Liverpool L16 7QH 3PA
* Mellor, Mr AJ. -Londesborough Cross, Town Stee treet, Shipton Thorpe, York, N. Yorks. YO43
* Mills Kia » 4 Damson Garth, Lund, Driffield, East Yorks. YO25 9TH U
Beynhurst House, Innings Lane, White Waltham, Maidenhead, Berks. SL6 se

+e ee ee HHH HH HH HH HH OR HH HR HD
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282

* Murfitt, Mr A.J., 10 Orchard Estate, Cherry Hinton, Cambridge, Cambs. CB1 3JP
* Murillo, Ms M. a Alameda Urquijo 35, 6 D, Bilbao, 48010, Spain
OX aS

: 01,M
* Nelson, Mr M.A., 72 Princes Road, Teddington, Middx. TW11 ORU
* Olney, Mrs A., Bag End, Stoatley Hollow, Bunch Lane, Haslemere, Surrey GU27 1AQ
* Orbell, Mrs J. L, 21 Leicester Road, Barnet, Herts. ENS SE
arker, Mr G., 9

2 1QB
* Prangell, Mr I.R., 1 Stable Flat, Barnsley Park, Barnsley, Nr Cirencester, Glos. GL7 SEG
* Reed, Mr G., 45 Melbourne Road, Wallington, Surrey SM6 8SH
* Reeve, Mr A.N., 68 Sebert Road, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP32 7EG
* Rich, Mr P.W., 2 Garden Cottage, Barnsley Park, Cirencester, Glos. GL7 SEG
* Roberts, Dr B.E., 9 Ladywood Mead, Lee ds, West Yorks. LS8 Pd Bi
* Ross, Mr K.H., 84 Mitchell Street, Bentleigh, Victoria 3204, Australia
* Rowell, Mr S.H., Drayton Hall, Hall Lane, Drayton, Norwich, Norfolk NR8 6DP
* Riink, Mrs K., Mooni 4, Tartu, 50412, Estonia
* Samuel, Mr E.S., 3 Glenview, Ynysddu, Crosskeys, Gwent NP11 7LG, Wales
. Sanchez, Dre. J ardin Botanico Nacional, Carretera del Rocio km 3,5, Calabazar, Boyeros,
aig Habana CP 19230, Cuba
* Sarazin, Mr A., Alleestr. 137, Bochum 44793, Germ any
. Schiedler, Mr J., 51 Poulett Gardens, Twickenham, Middlesex ba 4QS
* Selway, Miss J .. “Oak Park”, Exeview Road, Exmouth, Devon EX8 5AZ

* Studnicka, Dr M., Botanic Garden, Pur urkynova 1, Liberec, CZ - 460 01, Czech Republic

* Takamiya, Dr M. , Dept. of prelim Science, Faculty of Science, Kumamoto University,
Kumamoto 860- 8555, Ja

* Tidman, Dr M.J., 30 Greenhill ( Gardens, Edinburgh EH10 4BP, Scotland

* Turner, Mr J.W., 06 Broadwood Avenue, Ruislip, Middx. HA4 0,8

* Turney, Dr T.W., 17 McLaren Street, Mount Waverley, Victoria 3149, Australia

**Urquhart, Mr P.G. & Miss A. Smith, 14 Heather Road, Bicester, Oxon. OX6 9YU

* Warden, Ms C., 3 The Causeway, Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA

. Watson, Mrs J., Whyte Cottage, a West, Rothbury, Northumberland NE65 7YN

* Webb, Miss C.M., 12 Bromley Street, Leeman Road, York, N. Yorks YO2 4YQ

is Weston, Mrs I. , Lindhris, Risshols me ne Riseholme, Lincoln, Lincs. LN2 2LD

* Whalley, Dr P., Norwood Cottages, 60 Church Road, Leckhampton, Cheltenham, Glos. GL53 0PR
. Winning, Mr L.H. , 75 Cardinal Avenue, Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey KT2 5RZ
CHANGES OF ADDRESS

Ashcroft, Dr C., 1 Claude Street, Dunkirk, Nottingham, Notts. NG7 2LA

Barcelona, Dr J. F., Botany Dept., National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution,
Shin on DC, 0560 - 0166, USA

Beeson, Mr R 3 BC, Thombill ae. seek Road, a Dorset DT9 33W

Boudrie, Mr M., Résidence Ophélia, 9, Rue Marmontel, Clermont-Ferrand, 63000, France

Bridges, Dr K.M., 54 White Street, Flat . Partick, Chane G11 5EA, Scotland

Cox, Mr S.J. , Fern Cottage, 18 High Street, Stanwick, Northants. 9 6QA

de Winter, Dhr. W. Fa Plevierenweide 82, NI-6708 Bx byl groan Netherlands

tland

Godfrey, MrT. An Oiseann, Ord, Sleat, Isle of Skye 1V44 8RN, Scot

cat i Prof. nO, Os aan 29, Biltho ebb Ae HN, imag

Horn, Mr K., M Parcownarans 17, Uttenreuth, D-

Kato, Dr M., pony rg ty Sciences, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 rey Bunkyo-ku,
Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan

Krau le 15, Bonn, D - 53111, Germany

Leon, Dr B. — nati me: Young, Dept. of Geography GRG 334, University of Texas,

2:

i Wodantal 28, 45529 Hattingen, German
Maddison, oly: c 3 & “rag Woodbury, Yr Hen Chapel, Colin. Talybont, PE a,
Ceredigion SY24 SHL, Wales

283

MEETINGS PROGRAMME 2001

Meetings Secretary: P.J. Acock
Meetings Subcommittee: R.G. Ackers, N.J. Hards, J.M. Ide, A. Leonard, P.H. Ripley

Sat. 3 March Spring Indoor Meeting & AGM — Cambridge
Location: Gilmour jas Cambridge Botanic Garden
Leader: Graham Acker:

Fri. 30 Mar. - Mon. 2 Apr. Long Weekend Field een Guernsey
Centre: New Vazon Bay Hotel, Castel
Leaders: Trevor Taylor & Andrew Leonard
Sat. 23 - Sun. 24 June Long Weekend Field Meeting — Cornwall
Centre: St Columb Major Leader: Jan Benallick
Mon. 23 - Thurs. 26 July ‘plas Fern Flora Worldwide, Threats and Responses
cation: University of Surrey, Guildford
on Graham Ackers & Clive Jermy
Sat. 28 - Tues. 31 July and Weekend F soe re sete Lake District
Cen Gra eader Mike Porter
Thurs. 16 - Sat. 18 Aug. Sen Flower or BPS Stand
Further Info.: Matt Busby

Sat. 8 Sept. Day Visit - Wakehurst Place & Loder Valley, Sussex
Leader: Paul Ripley

Sat. 3 Nov. Indoor brian Hoe ales History Museum, London
Leade Jennife

January 2002 Chile

June 2002 Edinburgh District

For further details of these and other meetings of interest to members, including information on
accommodation, ie see the separate Meetings Programme sheet. This can be sent to overseas
members on reque

REGIONAL MEETINGS

For details of additional meetings in the following areas, please contact the regional organisers,
enclosing a stamped addressed envelope.

Leeds & District B. Wright, 130 Prince Rupert Drive, Tockwith, York YO26 7
South-East England — P.H. Ripley, North Lodge, Dene Park Gardens, Shipbourne dei Tonbridge,
NS

East Anglia B.R. Stevenson, Willow Cottage, Cowlinge, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 9QB
North-West England Mrs M. Garstang, Overbeck, Pennybridge, Ulverston, Cumbria LA12 TRQ
Cornwall Miss R.J. Murphy, Shang-ri-la, Reskadinnick, Camborne, Cornwall TR14 0BH
otland Dr H.S. McHaffie, 180 Granton Road, Edinburgh EHS 1AH
Se

CHANGES OF ADDRESS contd

Maerz, Mr G., Postfach Punta
Stuttgart, D - 70076, Germany
Montgomery, Dr J.D., Eco logy III, Inc., 804 Salem Blvd., Berwick, Pennsylvania 18603-9801, USA
| Bradmore Road, Oxford, Oxon. OX2 gia
; “-N., Wartherstrasse 5 a, Montabaur, D-56410, Ger
N
Ichol, Mr P., Strawberry How €, 14 Horncastle Road, Woodhall Spe. ie LN10 6UZ
relan

+, 11 Bullivant Close, Greenhi é

R , Greenhithe, Dartford, Kent DA9 9PB
oe: 42 School Lane, Norton, Sheffi eld, South Yorks. $8 8BL
arpe, P.O. Box 499, Edgecomb, ME 04556, USA

S
ooo — ookwood, len 9 Road, Oulton Broad, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR32 Ba:
Uns er Show Ltd, Attn. The Sec Victoria Park, Southport, Merseyside PR i

it ecretary,
orth, Mr I., Newers Prospect, Lancaster Road, Pilling, Lancs. PR3 6AE

284

cai I

REGINALD KAYE Lt.

Silverdale, Lancashire LA5 0TY
Stock a very comprehensive collection of
BRITISH FERNS AND THEIR CULTIVARS

Catalogue on request

FIBREX NURSERIES Ltd
Honeybourne Road, Pebworth, nr Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire CV37 8XT
Hardy and tender ferns
Begonias, Gloxinias, Hederas, Hydrangeas, Primroses, Arum Lilies
and plants for the cool greenhouse
Catalogue on request

RICKARDS HARDY FERNS Ltd
Hardy and half hardy ferns

Kyre Park, Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire WR15 8RP

Please send stamped addressed envelope for list

FANCY FRONDS
Specialising in North American and British hardy ferns
Judith Jones
1911 4th Avenue West, Seattle, Washington 98119, USA
Send two International Reply Coupons for catalogue

HARDY FERNS

.N. Timm
The Fern Nursery, Grimsby Road, Binbrook, Lincolnshire LN3 6DH
Please send stamped addressed envelope for list

MRS J.K. MARSTON

Specialist Fern Grower
A wide range of hardy and greenhouse ferns, especially Adiantums
Culag, Green Lane, Nafferton, nr Driffield, East Yorkshire YO25 0LF

Send £1 for catalogue

MONKSILVER NURSERY
Oakington Road, Cottenham, Cambridge CB4 4TW
Hardy British and foreign ferns
(together with over 700 choice herbaceous and woody plants)
Please send six first class stamps for catalogue