696 



HOKTICULTURE 



November 27, 1915 



NEPHROLEPIS EX ALT ATA BOSTONIENSIS 



CONCERNING NEPHROLEPIS BOS- 

 TONIENSIS. 

 Editor Hohticultube: 



Dear Sir — Your comment in Horti- 

 culture for October 16th, regarding 

 my Boston fern note in a Brooklyn Bo- 

 tanic Garden Leaflet is welcome, as 

 you suggest it might be, although I 

 question the force of your correction. 



It is welcome because I hope it may 

 bring out further facts bearing on the 

 question which may throw light on the 

 dark parts in the antecedents of bos- 

 toniensis. I have spent a considerable 

 number of days and dollars during the 

 last year visiting growers of bostoni- 

 ensis or its varieties about New York, 

 Boston, and Philadelphia, besides cor- 

 responding with those further west, all 

 in search of accurate information 

 about these ferns. I have not, how- 

 ever, yet reached the point where I 

 am inhospitable to additional facts 

 even though they may contradict mat- 

 ters which I now believe settled. At 

 the present time I have assembled at 

 the Brooklyn Garden nearly sixty-flve 

 distinct forms of Nephrolepis of which 

 probably forty are named American 

 varieties. These latter with two ex- 

 ceptions, I have obtained directly from 

 their original producers, having taken 

 this procedure in the interests of ac- 

 curacy. Of Piersoni and Anna Poster 

 (or Fosteriana, Fosterae, or Fosteri as 

 it is variously known) I have as yet 

 only uncertain specimens. Barrowsi I 

 have not at all as yet but hope to get 

 it next year from England. Or can you 

 tell me of some American grower who 

 has authentic material of the Foster 

 plant or of Barrowsi? 



I question the force of your correc- 

 tion because I do not believe there is 

 any real difference in our information. 

 It is true in a sense that Becker did 

 not originally discover bostoniensis. 

 He sold, by his own statement. 50,000 

 or more plants of it as "davallioides" 

 until G. W. Oliver convinced him that 

 it was not davallioides, when it was 

 then sent to England (Kew) for identi- 

 fication, where it was "discovered" and 

 named as bostoniensis, if this expres- 

 sion may be permitted. But was not 

 the material sent Becker material and 

 is there any real misstatement in say- 

 ing that bostoniensis was discovered 

 in the Becker establishment? Had 

 the new form been recognized and de- 

 scribed in the literature before Becker 

 obtained it? I ask these questions in 

 the same good part in which I judge 

 your note to have been conceived. My 

 information was derived from two in- 

 dependent sources both presumably 

 reliable and I hope my statement may 

 stand investigation. 



The collection at the Brooklyn Bo- 

 tanic Garden deserves further men- 

 tion. The Garden has given it space 

 not only because the variations are of 

 considerable scientific interest but be- 

 cause it is within the function of the 

 garden to further horticultural knowl- 

 edge. Besides the present collection 

 mainly of American forms, it is in- 

 tended to obtain next year all the 



English forms and to grow these to 

 determine their value. If the tests 

 show any to be superior to those now 

 grown here the results will be pub- 

 lished for the benefit of American 

 growers. In the meantime the garden 

 will welcome any help which American 

 florists can render. From the scientific 

 standpoint all variations, whether of 

 horticultural value or not, are of in- 

 terest and the garden will be glad to 

 receive any additional kinds. At the 

 same time it will reciprocate as far as 

 possible by supplying small plants or 

 runners of varieties now in stock 

 which it is permitted to send out. A 

 number of growers Iiave already sent 

 in new unnamed forms on the under- 

 standing that these will not be allowed 

 to go out. As it happens a number of 

 exchanges have already been made or 

 arranged but the distribution of plants 

 by the garden is somewhat limited ow- 

 ing to the small space at present avail- 

 able. Yours truly, 



E. C. Benedict. 

 Brooklyn Botanic Garden. 



VARIETIES OF NEPHROLEPIS. 



At the Brooklyn Botanic Garden 

 there has been assembled a collection 

 of between sixty and seventy varieties 

 of Nephrolepis ; over fifty of which 

 are named, as shown in the lists 

 given below. The catalogs of E}ng- 

 lish growers offer about forty addi- 

 tional varieties which the Garden ex- 

 pects to purchase within a few 

 months. 



In addition to maintaining this col- 

 lection for the purpose of scientific 

 study, the Garden desires to make it 

 of value to American growers of 

 Xcphrolepis. and makes, herewith, the 

 following offer. Small plants or run- 

 ners of any of the plants named will 

 be furnished to growers interested in 

 trying them out, as fast as a limited 

 supply of stock plants will allow. 

 Requests for information regarding 

 any of the varieties listed below will 

 be answered by the writer of this 

 note as completely as available data 

 will permit. Furthermore, the Garden 

 is having reprinted the writer's 

 article on Nephrolepis prepared for 

 Bailey's Cyclopaedia of American Hor- 

 ticulture, and will be glad to send a 

 copy of this reprint to any grower on 

 request. This contains a general dis- 

 cussion of Nephrolepis. with descrip- 

 tions of all the varieties about which 

 information was obtainable. 



In return, growers are asked to 

 send in any new form which they may 

 produce, and also any old forms, 

 such for example as Barrowsi. which 

 has not yet been obtainable in the 

 United States although listed in Eng- 

 lish catalogs. In connection with the 

 Cyclopaedia article, the writer will 

 welcome and greatly appreciate noti- 

 fication of any mistakes or omissions, 

 or other information pertinent to the 

 subject. 



List 1. Varieties of N. cxaltata of 

 authenticated identification (two or 

 three exceptions noted), the stock 



plants having been obtained from 

 their original source; 

 N. exaltata (from Porto Rico), 

 bostoniensis (Becker). 

 Piersoni (?), elegantissima, ele- 

 gantissima "improved," elegantis- 

 sima compacta, superbissima, mus- 

 cosa, viridissima, "dwarf Boston"; 

 Whitmani, Whitmani compacta, 

 magnifica, gracilliina (?); 

 Amerpohli; Clarki, Smithi; Craigi, 

 robusta, Wanamakeri; 

 Scotti; Wagner, falcata; Anna Fos- 

 ter (?); Elmsfordi; 

 Harrisi, Millsi; Roosevelti, Teddy, 

 Jr.; 



Scholzeli (typical two-pinnate), 

 Scholzeli (3-pinnate, erect Ivd), 

 Scholzeli (3-pinnate, spreading); 

 Giatrasi, New York; todeoides (?). 

 List 2. Varieties of other species 

 N. e.ialtata: identification not yet 

 verified: 



N. cordifolia, tuberosa plumosa, pecti- 

 nata, Duffii, rivularis, new spe- 

 cies (?), biserrara (davallioides?), 

 biserrata furcans, hirsutula, hirsu- 

 tula tripinnatifida, Wittboldi, floc- 

 cigera, acuminata, philippinensis, 

 superba (or Westoni). 

 Besides these, other forms to the 

 number of ten or fifteen are being 

 grown at the Garden. Some of them 

 are possibly of no commercial value, 

 but others are of value and are likely 

 to be introduced eventually. The 

 latter have been sent to the Garden 

 witli the understanding that they will 

 not be allowed to go out. 



R. C. Benedict, 

 Brooklyn Botanic Garden. 



ODE TO THE DAHLIA. 



By a Dahlia Lover. 



Written in honor of the first E.\hibition of 



the American Dahlia Society, held in 



the American Museum of Natural 



History, Sept. 24, 25 and 26, 1915. 



Queen of the waning summer time, I greet 

 thee. 



It is indeed a Joy sublime, to meet thee! 



Wonderful robes, with colors bright en- 

 fold thee. 



Crimson and pink and dark as night : they 

 hold me! 



Centuries old, and yet, with youth eternal, 



.\nd heart of gold, and character supernal, 



Down from the everlasting hills to meet us, 



With open arms, and smiling face to greet 

 us. 



Why do we love thee, we of these later 

 days. 



We who are fascinated, as we gaze? 



Surely some memory dear and sweet en- 

 thralls us! 



Helpful and strong, thy silent voice, it 

 calls us. 



Back to our mother's garden, memories 

 call. 

 And, as we Journey, loving thoughts 

 grow fonder. 



This was her flower, she loved it best of all ; 

 We feel her, see her, love her, as we 

 ponder. 



So, .Summer Queen, and autumn queen, we 

 greet thee: 

 Thou art the flower to memory most dear. 

 Our mother's flower— proud are we all to 

 meet thee; 

 PrniKl of thy triumph. liianifested here; 

 And so with mother's name we link thee 

 ever. 

 Mother and dahlia, through all the years 

 gone by : 

 .\nd naught in all the years to come can 

 sever. 

 What beauty, love and memories supply. 



