Question

The first plants to reappear in a badly burned forest area will most probably be
A. Liverworts
B. Ferns
C. Grasses
D. Mosses

Answer 1

Hint: A fern is a member of a group of vascular plants. Plants that have both xylem and phloem are vascular plants. It reproduces via spores and has neither seeds nor flowers.

Complete answer: Ferns are generally the first colonizers of burnt down forest area because of the persistence of their underground rhizomes, while the above-ground parts get burnt up.
Rhizoids are root-like structures but no true roots.
It consists of single greatly elongated cells, water, and mineral salts and is absorbed over the whole structure. It anchors the prothallus to the soil.

1. Fern stems are known as rhizomes even if it grows underground only in some species.
2. Epiphytic species and many of the terrestrial ones have above-ground creeping stolons.
3. Some groups have above-ground erect semi-woody trunks (e.g., Cyatheaceae).
4. These can grow up to 20 meters (66 ft) tall in a few species (e.g., Cyathea brownie)
5. The leaves of ferns are complex leaves called megaphylls.
It is more complex than the microphylls of clubmosses.
6. Most ferns are leptosporangiate ferns but some are eusporangiate too. They produce coiled fiddleheads that uncoil and expand into fronds.

So, the correct answer is “Option B”.

Note: Some ferns are used for food, medicine, as a biofertilizer, as ornamental plants and for remediating contaminated soil.
They have been the subject of research for their ability to remove some chemical pollutants from the atmosphere. Bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) and water fern (Azolla filiculoides) are significant weeds worldwide. Fern genera, such as Azolla, can fix nitrogen and make a significant input to the nitrogen nutrition of rice paddies.