i65 



and, I fancy, must have arisen from a merely " bifid " 

 parent, as repeated subsequent search all over the common 

 has disclosed nothing but the veriest " tips " as an approach 

 to cristation. This year I have raised a batch of youngsters 

 from my seedling. Amongst them I have, I believe, a 

 percentage of grandiceps, though whether they are big 

 enough to survive the winter remains to be seen. This 

 autumn I also collected spores on the same common from 

 fronds which showed most approach to a " crispa " 

 character, and I now have a pan of prothallus from these, 

 though I fear the variation was too slight to yield me any 

 results of interest. 



Although my total of varieties would doubtless appear 

 very small to most of our members, yet I find I am regarded 

 by gardening acquaintances as quite a fern specialist. 

 Doubtless, indeed, it is a surprise to the uninitiated to see 

 even my few plants. I cannot boast the plumose 

 Polysti chums, etc., the " sissimum " types as Mr. Green 

 calls them, yet I have such gems as A. f. fcemina Phtmosum 

 Dvuevyi ; several fine crested Athyriums, and one 

 narrow, almost Frizellae one; the "King of Male 

 Ferns"; and also L. p. mas cvispa and L. 

 dilatata gvandiceps. Then come those fine divisilohe Poly- 

 stlchums, longiplnnatum, stipulatitm [CavhoneU), pevfectnm 

 (Jones), Holeance, and several fine " proliferums " ; Poly- 

 podium V. Cambricum, P. v. grandiceps (Fox), pulchevvimuin, 

 and elegantissimo-mnltifidum ; a number of beautiful Harts- 

 tongues, and last, but not least, that yearly delight 

 Osmunda vegalis cvistata. 



The majority of these (the last-mentioned is a notable 

 exception, though) do far better with me when planted in 

 the open than under glass, as, owing to west facing of my 

 greenhouse, they get such a scorching on summer after- 

 noons. However, no discouragement can damp one's 

 enthusiasm in face of so much exquisite frondage. I am 

 well content to go on cultivating, in the hope that one day 

 I shall create the ' fern fever ' in someone else locally. 



