Photo and Commentary ©2023 by Robert Howson
Tuesday, November 7, 2023
It’s hard to place a value on some things, like ferns for instance. With over 12,000 species, one might think someone could have found some economic use for them, but the results along those lines are rather minimal. I suppose violin makers might claim inspiration for the design of their instruments from young, unfurling fronds, sometimes called a fiddle-head, but that leaves the question as to which name came first, doesn’t it? An ounce of raw fiddlehead contains ten calories. It provides protein and zinc along with Vitamin A and C and some phosphorous, potassium, and calcium. Unfortunately I know of few who choose to subsist upon fern except for a random rabbit here and there.
Ancient tribes have used them to treat centipede bites and coughs but that’s not been particularly popular lately. Boston ferns apparently are helpful in eliminating formaldehyde from the air, the kind found in some carpets and air fresheners. Again, unfortunately, my Boston ferns usually died off before the formaldehyde got to me. “Fern seeds” were reputed to offer invisibility to a member of the appropriate sex who ate them, but that’s been difficult to prove – both the invisibility and the part about ferns having seeds.
The one thing most would agree with is that they add beauty to our world, and beauty has value in and of itself. Albert Einstein, who became most famous among the masses for his ability to quantify, had this to say: “Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted.” And you can take that to the bank.