Fern fern ("Onoclea sensibilis"). Giant water fern ("Salvinia molesta") is one of the world's worst aquatic weeds. The important fossil fuel coal consists of the remains of primitive plants, including ferns. Ferns have been studied and found to be useful in the removal of heavy metals, especially arsenic, from the soil. Other ferns with some economic significance include: The study of ferns and other pteridophytes is called pteridology. A pteridologist is a specialist in the study of pteridophytes in a broader sense that includes the more distantly related lycophytes. Pteridomania is a term for the Victorian era craze of fern collecting
Evolutionary history of plants of water and mineral nutrients such as phosphorus, in exchange for organic compounds which they could not synthesize themselves. Such fungi increase the productivity even of simple plants such as liverworts. To photosynthesise, plants must absorb from the atmosphere. However, this comes at a price, since making the tissues available for to enter allows water to evaporate. Water is lost much faster than is absorbed, so plants need to replace it. Early land plants transported water apoplastically, within the porous walls of their cells. Later, they evolved the ability to control water loss (and acquisition) through the use of a