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For the beginner, Lady Ferns, Hartstongues and Las- 

 treas are the easiest to deal with, as is proved by the fact 

 that under glass they appear in abundance as strays, i.e. 

 self-sown plants, which is rarely the case with Shield Ferns. 

 Polypodiuni vulgave varieties are very slow, and it requires 

 several years to bring the young plants up to specimen 

 size. Next to sowing immediately when ripe, that is in 

 the middle of the growing season, collecting spores then 

 and sowing them early the following Spring, say in March, 

 has the advantage that if the summer-sown pvothalli do 

 not make plants before the winter, there is a danger of 

 confervoid growth invading them or sourness setting in 

 during the resting season, from which Spring sown spores 

 of course are exempt. If, however, a moderately warm 

 house be available for winter accommodation, all the stages 

 of growth are greatly accelerated and much time saved. 



The first essential in all cases is persistent moisture. 

 The pots or pans containing the spores should be well 

 drained and kept standing in saucers of water, and be covered 

 with glass slips. As already stated in former articles, the 

 soil should be of a leafy open character surfaced with a little 

 loam in small lumps and pressed flat. Prior to sowing a 

 piece of paper should be laid on this, and boiling water 

 poured thereon until it runs out at the bottom scalding hot. 

 This kills all worms, germs, and alien spores, and gives a 

 fair field for the fern spores, which should be scattered very 

 thinly and evenly over the soil when it has cooled. Cover 

 with glass, make a registry of the sowing by means of a 

 number, marked clearly on the pot or pan, or preferably on 

 a small label, and put in a well-lighted position out of 

 sunshme, standing them, as we have said, in saucers or 

 bedding them in cocoa-nut fibre. As any small pot will 

 accommodate quite a sufficient crop for any amateur, it is 

 well to sow in thimble pots, a number of which can be 

 compactly bedded in a nine-inch pan, and covered with one 

 pane of glass. All that is then necessary is to see that the 

 fibre is kept quite moist. Watering must be done from 



