Filmy ferns : dessication and resurrection

Hi all,

a few years back I asked for advice on building a modern version of a
Wardian case for a suspected filmy fern that had appeared among my
sporelings; the fern has done well but I'm pretty sure it is a
Leptopteris hymenophylloides rather than a species of filmy fern.

However, when visiting my brother's farm in New Zealand a little over
a year ago, I grabbed a bit of dried up filmy fern hanging over the
edge of one of his farm tracks and bagged it up. Done on impulse after
I remembered that some filmy ferns will survive dessication and the
fern is now thriving in a 30l aquarium. (I have the fern in a tray
which is on a brick, which in turn is in about 20mm of rainwater. I
also spray the fern with rainwater and have a small fan mounted on the
inside of the aquarium cover to keep the air moving around.)

I've searched the internet for information on filmy ferns and
dehydration without coming up with much - does anybody on the list
have any suggestions? I'm mainly just curious, but transporting ferns
in a dehydrated state is an interesting possibility.

John.

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