English: Ferns; Pteridophytes.
Synonym: Pteridopsida;
Cryptogamae.
Content: thiaminase; tannins; flavonoids.
Members: Ferns, Horsetails, Lycophytes, Clubmosses, Spikemosses, Quillworts.
Plant theoryPteridophyta is a phylum in the Plant kingdom, including the Ferns, Horsetails and Clubmosses. It is the first clade in the
Tracheophyta, the vascular plants.
Pteridophyta are placed in the Phylum 4, having the connection with the
Iron series.
The classification of the ferns has been difficult. Firstly, there was hardly any information in homeopathy about them.
Lycopodium clavatum was the exception, but is was so overused and has such a vast
Materia medica that it is hard to find the essence in it.
Classes & SubclassesThere are four classes in the
Pteridophyta and ten subclasses. The 10 subclasses have each one order, there is only
Phase 1.
This expresses that all ferns have an impulsive quality. They just do things, without thinking about it, only following the rules. It is a kind of naivety. It is also an expression of their being young in evolution. They are more children and teenager remedies, even when much needed in adults, for their child and teenager personalities. It is as if there is no past, only a future.
The opposite is the case for
Fungi, where there are 7 orders, each in one of the 7
Phases in a subclass, but each order has only 1 family and thus 1 Subphase. This expresses that
Fungi has much past, but little future.
3-410.00.00: Isoetanae: Hydrogen series3-411.00.00:
Isoetidae3-420.00.00:
Lycopodianae:
Carbon series3-421.00.00: Selaginellidae
3-422.00.00:
Lycopodiidae3-430.00.00:
Equisetanae:
Silicon series3-431.00.00:
Marsileidae3-432.00.00:
Equisetidae3-433.00.00:
Cyatheidae3-440.00.00:
Polypodianae:
Iron series3-441.00.00:
Salviniidae3-442.00.00:
Pterididae3-443.00.00:
Aspleniidae3-444.00.00:
PolypodiidaeTable OrdersNr
Series Remedy code
Classes Subclasses Order
411 Hydrogen 3-411.10.00
Isoetanae Isoetidae Isoetales421 Carbon 3-421.10.00
Lycopodianae Salviniidae Salviniales422 Carbon 3-422.10.00
Lycopodianae Lycopodiidae Lycopodiales431 Silicon 3-431.10.00
Equisetanae Azollidae Azollales432 Silicon 3-432.10.00
Equisetanae Equisetidae Equisetales433 Silicon 3-433.10.00
Equisetanae Cyatheidae Cyatheales441 Iron 3-441.10.00
Polypodianae Marsileidae Marsileales442 Iron 3-442.10.10
Polypodianae Pterididae Pteridales443 Iron 3-443.10.00
Polypodianae Aspleniidae Aspleniales444 Iron 3-444.10.00
Polypodianae Polypodiidae PolypodialesBotanyFerns, Horsetails and Clubmosses; vascular, tracheophyta; spore plants; having xylem and phloem, vessels; having stems, leaves, roots; reproduce via spores; no seeds; no flowers.
Ferns, Horsetails and Clubmosses have vessels for the first time in the evolution of plants. They are vascular plants together with later evolutionary clades: the
Spermatophyta. Hence the name
Tracheophyta, vessel plants. The vessels make transport possible and with that specialisation in the form of roots, leaves, stems and reproduction systems. It can make them bigger than for instance mosses. This aspect of transport and specialisation is an aspect of the
Iron series.
Ferns have having xylem and phloem, making them more rigid and woody, and thus making them bigger.
The reproduction is via spores. As spore plants they have no flowers or seeds.
TaxonomyPteridophyta are not monophyletic because the Monilophyta, ferns and horsetails, are more closely related to seed plants than to Lycophyta.
Pteridophyta is thus not widely accepted as a taxon anymore, but remains in common parlance, as do pteridology and pteridologist. This is so as
Pteridophyta share a life cycle and are collectively treated or studied, for example by the International Association of Pteridologists and the Pteridophyte
Phylogeny Group. A nice example is the
Pteridophyta itself: it is not monophyletic as the
Spermatophyta are arising in them, in between the clubmosses and the real fern, the Euphyllophyta. But the PPG group itself is treating them both. This problem arises from using the criterion of monophyletic too strictly.
The botanical classification of ferns was not very developed. This changed very much with the publication on ferns by the Pteridophyte
Phylogeny Group, PPG 1, in 2016. This made the homeopathic classification much easier. The table below shows the relationships between the orders as in the
Plant theory with the families of the PPG1 classification.
Plant theoryPteridophyta is a phylum in the Plant kingdom, including the Ferns, Horsetails and Clubmosses. It is the first clade in the
Tracheophyta, the vascular plants.
Pteridophyta are placed in the Phylum 4, having the connection with the
Iron series.
Typical is that in all of them there is only
Phase 1: each subclass contains only 1 order. This expresses that all ferns have an impulsive quality. They just do things, without thinking about it, only following the rules. it is a kind of naivety. It is also an expression of their being young in evolution. They are more children and teenager remedies, even when much needed in adults, for their child and teenager personalities. It is as if their no past, only a future.
The opposite if the case for
Fungi, where there are 7 orders, each in one of the 7
Phases in a subclass, but each order has only 1 family and thus 1 subphase. This expresses that
Fungi has much past, but little future.
Discussion differencesIn general the botanical and the
Plant theory classification are very similar.
Phase 3 families with their theme of confusion.
Fusion of cladesSome clades are fused in the
Plant theory, which is in contradiction with the monophyletic in the PPG classification:
Equisetidae,
Cyatheidae,
Pterididae.
Some Families have absorbed smaller neighbours, without losing their monophyly:
Gleicheniaceae,
Culcitaceae,
Dicksoniaceae,
Lindsaeaceae,
Thelypteridaceae,
Dryopteridaceae and
Polypodiaceae.
In several cases the "outsider"
Phases,
Phase 1 and
Phase 7, got included in the main clade. For instance,
Lindsaeaceae and
Dennstaedtiaceae got included in
Pteridales. As outsiders they are more different in their character, morphology and DNA than the central families.
Splitting of cladesIn some cases clades have been split, mostly in such a way that the secludes are also monophyletic:
Lycopodiaceae,
Huperziaceae,
Pteridaceae,
Dryopteridaceae,
Polypodiaceae.
The biggest change is the split of
Salviniales in 3 quite separate subclasses.
In other articles I have argued that the DNA analysis are not always full trustworthy. And the classification of the
Plant theory has proven itself very well, which makes the fitting of clades in it to be expected.
A nice example is the
Pteridophyta itself: it is not monophyletic as the
Spermatophyta are arising in them, in between the clubmosses and the real fern, the Euphyllophyta. But the PPG group itself is treating them both. This problem arises form using the criterion of monophyletic too strictly.
Equisetanae is the most problematic part of the
Plant theory classification of ferns, when looked at from the point of monophyly. In the PPG1 classification
Equisetanae looks like a tree with every new branch being a totally individual group. It is the problem of differentiating a sequence of evolution with a new generation of evolution. It is similar to a sequence of children who belong to one generation, compared with that of persons of another generation.
NomenclatureIn the
Plant theory somewhat different names are given to classes and subclasses. In the PPG classification classes and subclasses are not exactly recognised, as is done in the
Plant theory. In accordance with the endings of clades classes are given the ending "-anae" and subclasses "-idae". In the PPG classification subclasses are ending in "ineae".
Classes are difficult to recognise and if so get the ending "-opsida". This last ending can be confusing as some families have a similar ending, like Berberidopsis.
The inconsistency is obvious for derivations of Polypodium. Polypodiopsida is a kind of superclass for all
Pteridophyta without the clubmosses.
Polypodiidae is a kind of superclass for all Polypodiopsida without the
Equisetidae. The biggest subgroup of Polypodiopsida is
Polypodiales, which has the ending of an order, but contains 3 subclasses. One of them is the subclass Polypodiineae.
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