The New Zealand fern (Science badge)

The New Zealand fern 


32- Research and present your findings about a plant
unique to NZ (2 Stars)

Facts about the NZ Silver Fern

- It is an image to which all New Zealanders relate and is a powerful and emotional symbol of inspiration at times when it matters. The symbol comes from the leaf of the New Zealand fern - Cyathea Dealbata (Ponga is the Maori name). The leaves are dark green on the upper side and silver underneath.

This is a link to the The Silver Fern.

Where do Ferns grow

Ferns are typically found in moist, forested areas because they require lots of water. Ferns are abundant in all damp situations in New Zealand forests, forming the undergrowth beneath a dense canopy of evergreen trees. They are also found growing on tree trunks and branches and along stream banks.

Fern facts

• The leaves of ferns are called fronds and when they are young they are tightly coiled into a tight spiral. This shape, called a ‘koru’ in Maori, is a popular motif in many New Zealand designs.
• One notable New Zealand fern is bracken (rarahu), which grows in open, disturbed areas and was a staple of the early Maori diet in places too cold for the kümara to grow. The roots were gathered in spring or early summer and left to dry before they were cooked and eaten.

Threats

Because most ferns require damp, humid forest environments, they are easily damaged when forest conditions change – for example when the canopy is disturbed or when forest edges are created, thereby increasing sunlight and drying winds.

Here are some of the web sites that I looked at when finding stuff about ferns.

- Fern in New Zealand

- New Zealand Ferns

How we use the Silver fern

We use the Silver fern on the tops of the sports that we play e.g rugby the All Blacks, Silver ferns and other different sports.

We are using the silver fern in the Olympics this year. If we had to change the flag for NZ it would look like this:

In this flag it has the Silver fern in the middle with the 4 Stars on the right and a black back ground behind the Silver fern and a blue back ground near the red stars.