2l8 



FERN EXPERIENCES. 



By W. B. Cranfield. 



(Continued.) 



When writing of development, congenial condiiions and 

 surroundings have so great an effect that measurements 

 are apt to be misleading. From time to time I have 

 wondered to what size some Ferns can be grown without 

 being subjected to forcing or artificial conditions. I have 

 a plant of Polystichum angidave plnmoso-divisilohnm Esplan 

 growing out-of-doors in a large pot in a sheltered position 

 and unprotected save for a few leaves in winter, which 

 plant measures as follows : Diameter, 6 feet ; width of 

 frond about the centre, 12 inches; width of pinnae about 

 the centre, 3 J inches ; number of fronds, 14. It is a single 

 crown, and presents a charming picture; it bears spores 

 freely, but my sowings have hitherto proved very dis- 

 appointing, nothing but much inferior forms resulting. 

 Another striking plant grown under similar conditions is 

 Lastvea pseudo vias polydactyla Wills, the dimensions of which 

 are: Length of fronds, 4 feet 3 inches; width of frond, 

 13 inches ; natural spread of tassels, 12 inches; number of 

 fronds, 8 or g. 



In the notes accompanying the late Col. Jones' Nature 

 prints, reference is made to the peculiar conduct of Poly- 

 stichum angulare cristatuin ThonipsoncB, which commences 

 life w^ith the greatest promise, but with maturity becomes 

 an inferior gvandiceps. I can only say that my experience 

 of this fickle jade fully confirms the account given, the only 

 strange feature being that my plants are old specimens 

 resurrected from the Moly derelicts, which are going 

 through the same transmutation as seedlings, though 

 derived from bulbils. Following Dr. Stansfield's example, 

 I have grown a certain number of plants in pots, all of 

 which are more or less specimens. My chief difficulty is 

 in screening them from boisterous winds, which speedily 



