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an abundant crop of exotic Ptevis sevvidaia and others, and 

 we obtained a little forest of Lady Ferns. These we 

 eliminated as they declared themselves by means of a 

 fine-pointed pair of scissors. A second crop followed, and 

 were treated the same. By this time, however, it was 

 evident that the Lady Ferns were exhausted, for the pan 

 then yielded about 300 true seedlings of L. amula cvistata, 

 most of which went to Colonel Jones, as, assuming his 

 sowing to be a failure, the Ptevis family was not removed, 

 and the L. oemida were consequently crowded out. Now, 

 the fertile frond used was taken from a fernery full of 

 British Ferns, and hence, undoubtedly, was laden also with 

 stray spores, which produced the two crops of Lady Ferns, 

 owing to their more rapid germination and development, 

 before the oeimdas had a chance of asserting themselves. 

 Colonel Jones placed his sowing in a warm greenhouse, 

 and here, it is obvious, the adjacent Ptevis plants profited 

 by the opportunity, and, owing to the warmth, gained the 

 upper hand over both the Britishers. This explanation 

 involves a warning against sowing spores together of 

 species of different speeds of development and robuster 

 growth, since the weaker is bound thereby to go to the 

 wall when the earlier prothalli monopolize the space and 

 starve out the later ones, a point to remember in sowing, 

 as some fern spores yield prothalli very rapidly and others 

 very slowly, C. T. D. 



AN APOSPOROUS POLYSTICHUM. 



I herewith send you photographs (back and front view) 

 of a promising seedling, P. angulave, raised by my brother, 

 Mr. H. Stansfield, of Sale, and kindly sent by him to me. 

 It is of pulchevvimuni type, and bears upon the tips of the 

 ultimate segments small prothalli, which are visible in the 

 photograph. Its parentage is obscure, as it appeared 

 singly in a batch of mixed seedlings. A seedling of 



