THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



191 



The screwing process takes a quarter of an hour, and you may break 

 one of the glasses with the screwdriver. 



You will remember that in the July number, page 146, 1 mentioned 

 that one of my cases is filled with cocoa-nut dust alone, and that during 

 the past winter there was no artificial heat used. But I forgot to say 

 that on two occasions the temperature was so low that the fronds of the 

 ferns were all frozen as stiff as wires, and powdered with a coating of 

 hoar frost, iu precisely the same way as plants in a greenhouse are 

 when the irost has actually caught them. " Of course, there were many 

 losses," I hear you ejaculate. No, there were very few, and as I shall 

 show presently, some of the rarest and most beantiful of stove and 

 greenhouse ferns can bear one or two or perhaps more degrees of frost 

 without suffering seriously. 



I shall now endeavour to fulfil my promise of enumerating all the 

 ferns I have grown in glass cases, but 1 find that if I add a few parti- 

 culars of the history, uses, habits, and requirements of each, the record 

 will extend to hundreds of pages. I shall, therefore, abstain from par- 

 ticulars of history, etc., etc., and compress into the smallest space 

 possible such few practical observations as occur to my memory in 

 respect of the behaviour of each, and the treatment required to make the 

 best of them in closed cases. 



Adiantxjm. — All the species of 

 Adiantum are adapted for Wardian 

 cases, whether or not supplied with 

 artificial heat ; in a warm case their 

 growth is rapid and luxurious, but as 

 tliey are all nearly hardy, heat is not 

 essential to their well-doing. They 

 require a turfy light soil, and only 

 moderate ventilation. 



1. A. assimile is like A. cuneatum; 

 A. affine is like A.formosum. They 

 soon form fine plants, which, when 

 too large for the case, may be close 

 cut down, the roots parted, and be 

 planted agaia either in cases or 

 pots, and they will soon reclothe 

 themselves with their elegant fronds. 



2. A. capillus-veneris, the British 

 maidenhair, is quite at home in a cool 

 case, but grows faster with the help of 

 hot water. It is mentioned in Dr. 

 Deakin's delightful " Flora of the 

 Colosseum" as growing abundantly 

 on that magnificent ruin, and the 

 plants I have at the present time were 

 obtained by dividing a tufc brought 

 from the Colosseum, and kindly pre- 

 sented to me by my excellent friend, 

 Mr. Summers. We find it answer 

 admirably as a basket fern, and some 

 examples in cocoa-nut shells are ex- 

 quisitely beautiful, the growth ex- 

 tending beyond the edge of the 

 receptacle, and almost hiding the 



vessel which carries it with its ex- 

 quisitely delicate light green leafage. 

 The basket in which it is grown 

 should be well drained, the soil should 

 be turfy peat, broken very small, 

 three parts, silver-sand one part, and 

 hearthstone or bath brick or free- 

 stone, broken to the size of hazel- 

 nuts and less ; when planted, sprinkle 

 nodules of soft stone all over the sur- 

 face of the soil for the rhizomes to 

 creep over. It answers well to 

 grow in a pan under a bell-glas3 by 

 itself. It then requires very little 

 air, and must be protected from 

 sunshine. 



3. A. cuneatum, the finest of the 

 genus for cases, but as it grows with 

 immense rapidity, it must be taken 

 out and parted at least once a-year. 

 One of our plants, which was turned 

 out of a thumb pot into the centre of 

 a case this time last year, now covers 

 a space measuring eighteen inches 

 square, and is a glorious spectacle. 

 Any light turfy soil suits it, and in 

 cocoa-nut dust alone it grows finely. 

 It seeds freely in the case, and is 

 soon surrounded by its little progeny. 



4. A. formosum is the most im- 

 posing of this series, the large fronds 

 having great distinctness and cha- 

 racter. It requires a firm, sandy 

 compost and plenty of room, hence is 



