Ferns: Adaptability to Change

Ferns are some of the most ancient species on earth, having survived through massive changes over the last 400 million years .

Let Fern teach you about your own ability to adapt to change this month.

This month, I am choosing to be fascinated by ferns. As I investigate, I'm learning that they are adaptability superstars! Ferns are some of the oldest species still living on the planet and have survived all five of Earth’s mass extinctions. They exist in moist tropical to dry desert ecosystems and live on every continent in the world.

They were some of the first plants to figure out how to have their own vascular system, which carries water from the ground through the plant (rather than soaking it up from the atmosphere), allowing plant life to venture further from streams and oceans onto dry land.

Have you ever looked on the back side of ferns and wondered why they have spores and not seeds, like most plants do? About 400 million years ago, plants and fungi brought their best qualities together and created ferns!

There’s a lot of evolutionary science in there - but this is all to say that ferns have something to teach us about being highly adaptable to a changing environment!

As humans, we often become overly identified and comfortable with the way things are, even if we don’t particularly like them. When life beckons us towards change, it can trigger our primal “don’t change, stay safe” reaction, which forgets how adaptable and creative we truly are! For example, think of yourself ten years ago, and think of yourself now. What situation(s) in your life that you are living right now seemed scary, intimidating, or flat out not possible back then? Notice how your internal world shifted to adapt to your external circumstance.

Usually when we go through a big change, we go through a phase where we are uncomfortable. We have not yet adapted to this change of environment, activity, or identity. We can expect discomfort as a part of change, even really good change! Holding our discomfort as a part of the process of adaptation, instead of a problem that needs to be solved, can allow us to stay with the feelings and let them move through. Slowly, we find our new ground until this becomes the new normal.

There are many times, as well, when we are in situations that can’t be changed.  Can we call upon our adaptive skillsets to learn how to live well inside life as it is?  

Notice what life might be asking you to adapt to.  Ask Fern for help this month to support your ability to adapt to your current situation or the inevitable changes that life will bring this month. 

Also, on the theme of adaptation to change, we are moving from winter to spring, and this can be a great time to add adaptogenic herbs to your diet, which help our body and physiology to adapt to change. My favorite is Tulsi (Holy Basil), but take a look here for a deeper look into adaptogens and a cool company offering adaptogenic herbal blends.

In many of your local areas the fiddle heads are coming out right now! They are so cute and many are edible! Enjoy this delicious cuisine by frying them up with oil and salt.

This sword fern ground cover is one indication of a healthy redwood ecosystem. Thomas Epel in Botany In a Day shares “The spore plants flourished in the tropical climate for millions of years and laid down the organic matter that eventually became our coal deposits.”