172 



The Horlicalturist and Joarnal 



broken flower-pots in the upper soil. Take a 

 leaf of some fern, or several different species 

 of ferns, if you desire, that have the fruit quite 

 ripe. This can be discovered by shaking 

 over white paper, when, if ripe, a brown 

 powder will come off. These are the spores 

 or seeds. Dust these over the prepared earth, 

 replace the glass, and leave the case in a 

 warm, shady corner. In a few weeks, if not 

 permitted to become dry, a green scum will 

 appear, which in time will transform itself into 

 the most beautiful little ferns, that may be sep- 

 arated, potted, or transferred to other cases. 



Now, to fill the case. First make, if the 

 pan be three niches deep, about one inch in 

 depth of drainage — pebbles, charcoal, broken 

 bricks, or, better still, broken flower-pots ; 

 over this a thin layer of moss or coarse, 

 fibrous stuff of some sort, to prevent the earth 

 washing into the drainage and choking it. 

 Some cases have holes in the bottom, and 

 glass receptacles for superfiuous water ; but, 

 if care be used in watering, this will be 

 entirely unnecessary. For soil suitable to 

 grow most plants likely to be in the fernery, 

 a mixture of one part sand, one part peat, 

 two parts light pasture loam (leaf-mould may 

 be used for peat), will do well. The earth 

 should be heaped up a little in the center, or, 

 if the case is large, two or three little eleva- 

 tions may be made. Upon these place the 

 larger ferns or plants, with the others distrib- 

 uted around them, A log of wood covered 

 wath moss and small ferns is a very pretty 

 center piece ; and to cover the ground the 

 little running Selaginella, common in all 

 greenhouses, answers better than almost any- 

 thing else, except our own native mosses, 

 which must be treated with care, or else they 

 mold or dry up. 



Ferneries may be divided, if you like, into 

 two classes — dormant and active. By dor- 

 mant I mean such as contain plants which lie 

 at rest during the winter months — chiefly our 

 natives and others like them in habit that have 

 been introduced. These it is well to arrange 

 separately, as they require less heat than the 

 species growing all the year round, chiefly 

 from the tropics, which form the active fernery. 



The dormant fernery can be made very in- 

 teresting, the plants in it keeping about the 

 same all the winter, but growing toward 

 spring ; and, as many like the pleasure of 

 filling their case every fall, this is as good a 

 way as any to do, as it is a pretty ornament 

 for winter, and in summer need not be cared 

 for. Of the two thousand exotic species 

 known to exist, but three hundred probably 

 can be purchased in this country, and of these 

 comparatively few are suitable to grow in the 

 case. Most of the smaller-growing species for 

 sale hereabouts will do — particularly those of 

 Pteris, Doodia, and Adiatum (maiden-hair 

 ferns). Gold and silver ferns require care, 

 as the yellow and white farina washes off in 

 watering. Besides ferns. Begonias, Dracjenas, 

 and Marantas do well for the center of a case, 

 and many others can be tried. Even if they 

 do not succeed, there is a pleasure in experi- 

 menting. 



In New England there arc about the same 

 number of ferns as in Old England — forty-five ' 

 or six. About Salem, say within ten miles' 

 radius, there are sixteen genera, twenty-nine 

 species. Of these, few are suited to the 

 fernery. The larger ones grow well in the 

 garden, on the northerly side of a fence or 

 building. Of the smaller ones, the ebony 

 spleenwort, two or three of the Aspidiums or 

 shield ferns, the Asplenium Trichomanes do 

 well. The climbing fern will look pretty for 

 a while, and some of the ferns which lose 

 their foliage at the frost will, if their roots be 

 planted just under the moss, grow toward 

 spring — such as the beech ferns, hay-scented 

 ferns. New York ferns, and others. The 

 moonwort and common polypody, which grows 

 everywhere, should never be left out ; and the 

 hart's tongue and walking ferns are valuable 

 accessions, if they can be had. This com- 

 prises about all the native ferns of use that 

 can be collected here ; but there are many 

 little plants to associate with them, which add 

 much to the beauty of the case. The par- 

 tridge berry {Mitchella repens) can be gathered 

 in bunches, regardless of roots, tucked in the 

 moss and earth, where it will grow, bloom, 

 and often fruit. 



