THE FLOEAL WOELD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. 



11 



sheer impossibility to collect and cul- 

 tivate all the varieties of British 

 ferns. We do sometimes hear of per- 

 sons who are said to possess complete 

 collections, but it is certain that no 

 one has yet seen a complete collection 

 comprising examples of all the varie- 

 ties that have been named and de- 

 scribed, and pronounced distinct and 

 cbaracterietic. It is interesting to ob- 

 serve how certain species have a ten- 

 dency to sport, and are constantly 

 presenting us with new forms, while 

 others remain true to their types, and 

 with apparently no capability of vary- 

 ing from it even under circumstances 

 very diverse. Thus we have a bewil- 

 dering number of varieties of Scolo- 

 pendrium vulgare, tbe great part of 

 them beautiful, many of them curious, 

 and all interesting. So again of 

 Polypodium vulgare, Lastrea dilatata, 

 L. filix mas, Athyrium filix fcemina, 

 Polystichuru angulare, and Blech- 

 num spicant, the varieties are very 

 numerous, and are being constantly 

 augmented by new discoveries ; while 

 on the other hand we know of no 

 varieties at all of Allosorus crispus, 

 Asplenium septentrionale, Hymeno- 

 phyllum Tunbridgense, and a few 

 others of less note. It is worth ob- 

 serving that these varieties have been 

 produced spontaneously; the majority 

 have been found growing wild ; very 

 few have occurred among plants in a 

 cultivated state, and not one has been 

 originated by any process of human 

 manipulation. The ferns are with- 

 out flowers, and we cannot hy- 

 bridize them as we do auricu- 

 las, geraniums, and fuchsias. It may 

 also be worthy of observation, es- 

 pecially on this occasion, that the 

 principal interest in the cultivation of 

 British ferns arises out of the differ- 

 ences, resemblances, and peculiarities 

 of these sports or varieties. A collec- 

 tion of species and varieties compris- 

 ing all that could be obtained by dili- 

 gent search and purchase would be 

 worth from £300 to £500, some of 

 the rarer varieties being worth as 

 nursery plants from ten to forty shil- 

 lings each. But fortunately most of 

 the species, and many of the finest 

 varieties, are easily obtainable by 

 visits to the spots where they grow, 



or by purchase of nurserymen, by 

 whom they are sold at prices 

 which place them within reach of the 

 poorest cultivator. 



Collecting. — Every county has 

 its own natural ferneries, and of all 

 the counties in England, perhaps, 

 Devonshire is most favoured in the 

 abundance and variety of its ferns. 

 The localities of the rarer kinds are 

 of great importance to collectors, but 

 it is inadvisable to give great publi- 

 city to the names of places where the 

 rarest ferns are to be found, because 

 of the probability that their sites be- 

 coming generally known would soon 

 lead to their extermination from those 

 sites, and in the end extinguish them 

 altogether from the native flora. In 

 the neighbourhood of London are 

 many localities rich in ferns, but as 

 these are for the most part pretty 

 well known I shall not enumerate 

 them, but proceed at once to make 

 some remarks on collecting ferns for 

 cultivation. It is only during the 

 height of summer that the deciduous 

 kinds can be readily found by inex- 

 perienced collectors, and it is at that 

 season that fern hunting proves a 

 particularly agreeable pastime. It 

 would be better always if the ferns 

 could be removed from their native 

 sites when first about to commence 

 their new growth in the spring, and 

 this can be done sometimes by search- 

 ing in woods and hedgerows for old 

 fronds, and tracing them to their 

 source. The roots should then be 

 taken up without injury to the crowns, 

 and be at once planted, or potted as 

 required, and assisted with shade and 

 shelter until established in the places 

 assigned them in the garden. Expe- 

 rienced collectors may hunt for ferns 

 during the winter to great advantage 

 in districts where they are known to 

 abound, as in tbe event of a mild sea- 

 son many of the deciduous kinds will 

 be still green; and the evergreen 

 kinds, such as Polystichums, Scolo- 

 pendriums, common Polypody, etc., 

 may be better lifted in winter than at 

 any season. But as a rule fern hunt- 

 ing is a recreation for the summer- 

 time, and any fern may be taken up 

 in the height of summer and be kept 

 with the utmost certainty for cultiva- 



