Loose Leaf

Issue 3 — Out Now

Everything We Know About Ferns

Forty-four pages on the oldest plant in your flat. Printed in Bristol in federal blue and fluoro orange.

In This Issue

The Carboniferous Living Room

Ferns predate the dinosaurs by a hundred million years. We tried to imagine what it would feel like to live in a Carboniferous forest, and whether anyone would want to.

An Interview with a Maidenhair

We attempted to understand what a Maidenhair fern actually wants. It wouldn't say. Botanist [Priya Datta] helped us translate the silence.

Humidity: A Love Letter

Bathrooms, pebble trays, misting schedules — a deeply sincere essay on the lengths people go to for a plant that refuses to thrive in a centrally heated house.

The Propagation Diaries

Four months of spore propagation documented in photographs and frankly alarming close-ups. Spoiler: one of them made it.

Seventeen Ways to Kill a Boston Fern

A practical guide, sourced entirely from our own mistakes and the confessions of readers who wrote in after Issue 2.

£4 each — cash or card at the counter

Find a Copy in Bristol

Storysmith Books
3 Wick Road, Bedminster, BS3 3BN — on the shelf by the door, next to the local press section
£4
Pinkmans Bakery
85 Park Street, Clifton, BS1 5PJ — stocked at the counter alongside the other good things
£4
Dig Haüshizzle
29 Broad Street, Bristol, BS1 2HG — in with the zines, art books, and bits of ephemera near the back
£4

While stocks last

Back Issues

Issue 1 — The Pothos Papers

Our first forty pages: the history of the humble pothos, a propagation station how-to, and a very long argument about whether Devil's Ivy is a good name. Printed in teal and pink. A few copies remain.

Issue 2 — Cactus Country

We went to a cactus specialist's greenhouse in Somerset and came back changed. Thirty-six pages on succulents, dormancy, and the surprising difficulty of watering something once a month. Available from us directly.

The Editors

[Nell Forsythe]

Nell writes the long essays and does the layout. She has seventeen plants in a one-bedroom flat in Easton and maintains this is a reasonable number. She also runs the print days.

[Rosa Cahill]

Rosa does the illustrations and most of the interviews. She is better at keeping plants alive than Nell and tries not to bring it up. She handles stockist relationships and the online shop.

Houseplant Diagnostic

Order Direct or Get in Touch

Back issues, wholesale enquiries, submissions for Issue 4, or just to say hello — email us at [looseleafzine@proton.me]. We print in runs of 150 and sell out, so follow along if you want to hear about the next issue first.

Email the Editors