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divisions are sometimes acutely pointed, and sometimes 

 more bluntly, the difference appearing to depend largely 

 upon climatal conditions, blunter in the north than in the 

 south. Large quantities of fronds come from France for 

 bouquet purposes, and these are all of the " acutum '' type, 

 of which, however, marked examples crop up now and 

 again even when " obtusum " is the prevalent form here. 



The next commonest Fern in many places is 



AsPLENiUM Ceterach (Ceterach Officinarum) or the 



Scale Fern. 



This is very distinct from the rest of the family except 

 in its mode of bearing spores, which, however, is rather 

 masked by the fact that the backs of the fronds are so 

 densely covered with chaffy brown scales as to almost 

 entirely hide the fructification. The fronds, too, are thick 

 and leathery, of a dull dark green. They are only once 

 divided into semi-oval blunt ended smooth-edged lobes, 

 attached to the midrib close together by a broad base. 

 The frond has a narrow lance-like outline with a very short 

 stalk. It grows about six inches high in small clumps, 

 and frequents old walls for preference. It is never found 

 growing on the ground, or anywhere, except in thoroughly 

 drained positions and even prefers the sunny side. It is so 

 curiously resistant to drought that on one occasion we 

 obtained some specimens of a crenate form in Asia Minor, 

 which we placed in an envelope and then in abreast pocket 

 and forgot all about them until months later when we found 

 the dried and shrivelled plants in a discarded coat. We 

 dropped the apparent debris into a pail of water overnight, 

 and found the plant as "fresh as paint" the following 

 morning. When planted they grew on as if nothing had 

 happened. Curiously enough there is an exotic form ot 

 this (C. auveum) which only differs in its large size as it is 

 nearly a fo?t high, and this we have been told grows in the 

 soil under moist conditions. 



