Caz and I on our way to the beach~can you see the size of the bracken!

lovely photo Arlene

This reminds me a walk in the Lake District, I couldn't see where I was going! Great photo.

Fab photo :o)

~We just got nearly home when the heavens opened!~spent some time sheltering under a tree~we have had so much warm sun and downpours in the last few days that everything is growing like mad.
I think that the rain showers are to be more widespread next week so I hope those still waiting for rain will have some!

Great shot Arlene. We have had a little rain down here in Essex over the last couple of days but could do with quite a bit more. Forecast promises rain for the next few days so will have to wait and see.

Is bracken a fern like plant?

yes but tougher!~

Name: Bracken
( brackenfern, brake )

Latin name: Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn., (Pteris aquilinum, Eupteris aquilinum)

Occurrence: Unusually for a fern, bracken is a very successful coloniser and is widespread, particularly on neutral to acid soils in western parts of the UK. Originally a lowland and woodland plant it now infests many upland areas. Bracken became more invasive following tree clearance and an increase in sheep grazing on upland grassland. The young rhizomes cannot tolerate waterlogging but improved drainage has allowed bracken to colonize formerly wet sites. The upper limit for bracken growth on hills results from the effect of frost and wind on the fronds. Bracken in coastal areas can suffer salt damage in high winds. The vigorous growth and dense foliage, shade out other vegetation aided by the deep litter layer that builds up. The litter gives some protection from frost and from fire.

Bracken is a very variable plant and is often separated into different species, sub-species and varieties. Patches usually consist of several genetically distinct individuals.

Bracken can cause poisoning in stock animals although sheep and cattle normally avoid it, as do rabbits. In non-ruminants it causes a vitamin deficiency leading to staggers in horses. In ruminants, it causes ulceration and blood loss in cattle and blindness in sheep. The fronds are most toxic at the newly emerged or crozier stage. The fronds become less toxic with age but it is important that bracken cut for animal bedding should have died back entirely. The rhizomes are also poisonous and are a potential hazard to pigs that may uproot them and to cattle when ploughing exposes the rhizomes. Bracken is considered a human health hazard due to the carcinogenic spores. It also provides a habitat favoured by sheep ticks that transmit Lymes disease.

Few birds breed in bracken and it is said to have limited wildlife value. However, it is the preferred habitat for the whinchat and nightjar. There is a close relationship between bracken, violets and fritillary butterflies. Glands at the base of pinnae on the underside of bracken fronds secrete a substance attractive to ants.

Bracken was much used in the past for animal bedding, as a covering for potato clamps and as a source of potash for glassmaking. The fronds make good compost for use as a soil improver and together with manure and sheep

We do have that here in the Pacific Northwest as well..I thought it looked familiar..I think there was a patch of them out in the field here..behind my house...how about that ..went to look...no bracken...but a deer is laying there resting where I thought it used to be..lol..the wild Nootka Roses have taken over a large area of the field which is fine with me..the deer cannot get to my back lawn and garden so easily with it there..very scratchy...

~sounds lovely CJ~that bracken gets everywhere!

Wow, it looks like you live in some sort of tropical jungle!