Hunting for Fern Flowers,
aside from being innuendo for young couples that wander off into the
bushes (in some areas it's actually part of a ritual to encourage
engagement among young adults), is the possibly futile search for
something science says doesn't exist. Ferns are non-flowering plants,
they reproduce with spores. . . or do they? Legend has it the Fern
Flowers bloom just this one night a year, and withers before morning.
And also, they're extremely magical, though the exact nature of that
magic is somewhat debated. They might bring good luck, or grant
wishes, or allow one to speak to animals. But there's usually a catch
(because isn't there always?); sometimes the fortune or wishes can't
be shared with others, and other times the flowers are guarded by
evil spirits.
This bears and interesting
resemblance to a magical method of treasure hunting which is of
Mormon origins. The treasure hunting party first uses a ritual to
summon a ghost, which is supposed to lead them to treasure buried in
the woods. The area will be guarded by a devil which can attack if
they speak. So they must silently drive metal bars into the ground,
draw a magic circle, and finally dig up the treasure, all while the
devil tries to scare them into cursing. The reward for both is great,
but so is the risk.
However the Fern Flower
offers the finder a choice; take the flower with it's riches and
curses, or appreciate it's fleeting beauty and leave it be. In
treasure hunting that choice was already made, because no one goes
looking for buried treasure to not dig it up.
Sources and Further Reading:
“Fern Flower” Criptid Wiki
(Last Modified prior to 2019-06-21)
https://cryptidz.fandom.com/wiki/Fern_Flower
“Fern flower” Wikipeida
(Last Modified 2019-01-28)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fern_flower
“The Fern Flower” World Stories
(Last Modified prior to 2019-06-21)
http://worldstories.org.uk/stories/the-fern-flower/
Quinn, D. Michael. Early
Mormonism and the Magic World View.
(sorry, I don't know what
edition I read from) _
