has many long upwards facing 
limbs, like an immense artichoke, 
stretching the tree into a girth 
like a great castle. When I felled 
one, the wood surprised me with 
its vibrant magenta hue! I have 
taken great pride in the beautiful 
rocking chairs I have carved 
from it.

Clathropteris
Very common ferns, with long 
fronds radiating off the top of a 
long thin stem.

Phlebopteris
Quite akin to the related 
Clathropteris, and also 
very common. The fronds are wide 

and looping. Chinle is the only 
location where I have discovered 
this plant, which is quite 
fascinating.

Cladophlebis
Cladophlebis is a fern which I 
have long known to be water-
loving but weedy, crowding out 
many other grounds plants and 
being the first to grow when a dry 
wasteland is quenched with water, 
yet strangely in the wet tropical 
Chinle where I would have 
expected it to reach its peak, it is 
of only a moderate abundance and 
does not outgrow the other 
foliage.