Why Trim Back Perfectly Good Ferns?

In the middle of shaving all of the fronds off of what felt like the 100th fern today, I wondered why I was doing this. I have heard stories of old family habits being passed down from generation to generation, even though the function was obsolete. So, why do you cut all of the beautiful, full, green fronds off of a fern?!? I think Stan had said that if you don't do it all at once now, then when these fronds turn brown and the new ones grow in you have to sort them out of the new growth... I guess that makes sense. Maybe I will leave one like it is (with all of its pretty green fronds) and see what happens.