THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 245 



the tassel-like crests of the pinna3 which fringe all the fronds in a 

 very elegant manner. Fine for pots or out-door fernery. 



Puiyureum. — The true variety is that which Mr. Sim catalogues 

 under this name, and which is a form of incisum. It is of robust 

 growth, with elegant (typical) divisions, the stipes showing a fine 

 purple colour. By distinguishing this particular form as the " true 

 variety," my object is to deprive of the name " purpureum" the 

 purple-stemmed varieties which fern collectors meet with in their 

 rambles, for the simple reason that they are usually far inferior in 

 colour and structure to the one which Mr. Sim has secured by 

 extensive collecting and careful selecting. This is a noble fern for 

 the out-door rockery. 



Hamo-cristatum. — A very peculiar and beautiful variety, of 

 diminutive growth. It combines the elegant tasselled character of 

 the crested form of Lastrea Pilix-mas, with the dense flattened crests 

 of coronatum. A cliarming subject for pots and cases. S. H. 



STRAWBERRY GROWING IN KENT. 



N Kent hundreds of acres are devoted to the growth of this fruit, and 

 sometimes in one year a forest is converted into a strawberry plain. 

 In the latter case the labour connected with establishing a plantation of 

 strawberries is great. First, the axe has to be used, the large timber 

 becoming the property of the landlord ; then the mattock has to be 

 applied to grub up the underwood, which is a complete thicket, and much of this is 

 burnt on the ground. When duly prepared, the land is planted with strawberries, 

 an operation which generally takes place in the autumn. The distance of 2 ft. 

 6 in. is allowed between the rows, and 1 foot 6 inches between the plants. This 

 leaves a clear space round the latter, and, owing doubtless to not over-crowding, 

 the plants are seldom higher than six inches, and bear enormous crops. Some 

 growers keep their ground so clean that a barrow-load of weeds could not be picked 

 off a dozen acres. Before the fruit begins to ripen, straw is neatly placed round the 

 plants ; if it is long it is cut. After all the fruit is gathered, the straw is raked off 

 when dry, and stacked for another year ; half-decayed dung is also used, and put 

 on early in the spring, but the supplj- is too limited for its use to be general, and 

 straw, especially when new, has a decidedly better appearance. 



The plants are renewed every four or five years. Tlie sorts chiefly grown are 

 Eleanor, Goliath, Alice, Elton Pine, British Queen, and Sir Charles Napier. Alice 

 is becoming a favourite. Another variety called Count is highly spoken of ; this I 

 believe to be Comte de Paris. 



In my rambles I was curious enough to inquire who grubbed up woods and 

 planted strawberries in their place ? To this I could not get a satisfactorj- answer, 

 but I was informed that strawberries proved the better crop. At first only a few 

 square yards were converted, now there is a colony of strawberry growers, and in 

 some instances the land has been under strawberries eight or nine years at least. 

 What strikes one most is the variableness of the soil — one soil contains about forty 

 per cent, clay, another patch may be termed sandy loam, and a barrow-load of 

 stones might be picked off a few square yards. Another kind I noticed to be much 

 impregnated with humus or peat. A handful taken up and pressed presented an 

 appearance like that of the ball of a plant potted in half loam and peat, with a 

 mixture of sand ; and I think I shall not err if I say that it contained fifty per cent, 

 of peat. As regards crops, their difference in appearance is not great; those on 

 the first-mentioned soil appeared the best. 



Many will doubtless be anxious to know if this branch of horticulture pays. 

 Your correspondent Mr. Forsyth's calculation would perhaps not be far off the 



