24 



Polystichum aculeatum pulcherrimum Druery. 

 „ „ gracillimum. 



The above, with a number of others, represents a most 

 remarkable new section of Shield Ferns raised jointly by 

 Mr. C. B. Green, of Acton, and myself. In some of these 

 the sub-divisions of the frond, only i inch long in the 

 parents, are as much as 3 inches in length, with splayed 

 tassel-like terminals. No two are precisely alike, and one 

 of Mr. Green's batch resembles the densum section of P. 

 angnlave, being tripinnate and dense. The parent, P. acul. 

 pnlchcrvwmm , was found nearly 40 years ago in Dorset, and 

 has reputedly borne no spores until a few were found from 

 which this wonderful batch arose in conjunction with a 

 number of the parental type and a few reversions strongly 

 resembling P. angnlare. 



ScoL V. Sagittato grandiceps. 

 This fern is a very curious one. Its parent was a wild 

 find by Mr. J. Williams, St. Austell, who sent me for 

 inspection a frond taken from the plant when found. It 

 was merely a normal, with divided frond tips of the 

 lobatum type, plus an arrow-shaped base with fanned tips. 

 The spores sown from this, however, yielded, amid a batch 

 of more or less common ones or of the parental type, nine 

 plants, in which the whole of the blade of the frond was 

 suppressed, while the divided tips of the basal lobes and 

 the frond tips were transformed into 3 dense bunches close 

 set together, forming as a rule a triple bunch surmounting 

 a bare stalk. The fronds are also sparsely viviparous, 

 bulbils appearing on the surface. It will be noted that 

 these originated from wild spores and not after cultivation ; 

 a peculiar instance of how great a -varietal jump may occur 

 under purely natural conditions in the potencies of the spores. 



A. F.F. Kalothrix cristatum. 

 This is a well crested form of the beautiful A. f.f. 

 Kalothrix, which appeared spontaneously in a sowing of my 

 own " superbum " section, no less than 7 plants originating 

 from one prothallus. So far it has remained very dwarf, 

 persisting in forming little tufts by lateral ofT-sets instead of 

 a larger single crowri. C. T. D. 



