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Fern — Part 2

Archegonia produce

fern- "plants," -roots, stems,

fronds, and spore-cases

containing spores (sporophyte).

In comparing hepatics, mosses, and ferns with a view to determining their relative positions in the plant kingdom one must be careful to compare homologous parts, gameto-phyte with gameto-phyte, sporophyte with sporophyte.

A study of the asexual generation, the sporophyte, (spore-case, foot, and pedicel) of leafy-mosses, will show that they have suggestions of the more complex structure found in the asexual stage, (sporophyte), of the pteridophytes, a group including ferns (filices), horse-tails (equisetums), and Christmas-greens (lycopodiums), which possess tissue composed of tubular cells (vascular bundles), set apart for the purpose of strengthening the plant and of carrying liquids from one part to another. The Pteridophytes have also true roots or underground organs with a vascular tissue.

The hepatics and mosses are therefore classified between the lowest group of plant life (Thallophytes), bacteria, algae, fungi, etc., without stem, leaves, and roots, and the spore-bearing plants which have well-developed stems, leaves and roots, such as ferns, horse-tails, and lycopodiums, (Pteridophytes).

The genus Riccia has no foot and no pedicel, simply a spore case.

Pores (stomata) for the inlet and outlet of gases which serve for food and respiration are found on certain parts of the sporophyte of leafy mosses and not on the gametophyte; they are found on the sporophyte of ferns and not on the gametophyte (prothallium). They are on the gametophyte and not on the sporophyte of hepatics, (except in the Anthocerotaceoe).