May 2, 1867. ] 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



307 



H, abmptnm, should be grown on mossy rocks or triinljs of trcusi 

 in a cool, hnmid. and shady position, and well-ventilatad atmosphere- 

 .W" to 70°. West Indies. 



H. ciliatnm. Rrows on mossy rocks or trunks, and should be kept 

 very humid and rather close. .50° to 75^. West Indies. 



H. hirsutum, grows on logs of wood, and slionld be kept very humid 

 but airy, and ought not to be watered over the fronds. bH" to S0°. 

 West Indies. 



H. hirtellum, a fine .Jamaica species, which requires to be kept very 

 hnmid and airy. 50° to 80°. 



H. Plumieri, to be kept very humid and airy. 5.5° to S0°. West 

 Icdies. 



H. sericeum, grows on rocks in the West Indies, and thrives best on 

 them in this country. It should be kept very humid but airy. It 

 dislikes water on the fronds. 55° to 75°. 



Greenhousk Species, requiring a temperature of 40° in winter : — 

 Hymenophyllum leruginosum, growing on rocks and mos.sy logs ; 

 should be kept humid and rather close, and watered freely, but not 

 over the fronds. W to 65°. New Zealand. 



H. caudiculatum, needs a compost of decaying wood or mossy logs, 

 and a very humid and rather close atmosphere. ii)° to 65°. Chili. 



H. chiloense, on mossy rocks and logs, and to be kept very humid. 

 40° to 65°. Chili. 



H. crispatum, needing the trunk of a Palm or tree Fern, and to be 

 kept very humid but airy. 40° to 65'. New Zealand. 



H. cruentum, should have a nio=isy log of wood, a very humid atmo- 

 sphere, and a rather shady situation. 40° to 65°. Chili. 



H. demissum, 1 foot high, requires to be kept humid bnt airy. 

 40° to 65°. New Zealand. 



H. dichotomum. recjuires a mossy log of wood, a very hnmid at- 

 mosphere, and a shady position. 40° to 65°. Chili. 



H. dilatatum, needs a compost of decaying wood, leaf mould, and 

 moss. A verv humid rather close atmosphere, and a shady position. 

 40' to 6.5°. New Zealand. 



H. flabellatnm, grows on the trunks of tree Ferns or of Palms. It 

 should be kept very hnmid, and rather aiiy. 40° to 65°. Tasmania. 



H. flesuosum, needs the trunk of a tree Fern or mossy log, and 

 must have a very humid and rather close atmosphere. 40° to 65°. 

 New Zealand. 



H. fuciforme, 18 inches to 2 feet high. Needs to be kept very 

 humid and rather airy. 40° to 65°. Chili. 



H. polyanthos, requires to be kept humid and airy : it does not 

 thrive under a glass shade. 40° to 70°. New Zealand. 



H. pulcherrimum, needs a very hnmid atmosphere. 40° to 65°. 

 New Zealand. 



H. rarum. very like H. tunbridgense. needs to be kept vei-v humid 

 but airy ; avoid wetting the fronds. 40' to 65°. New Zealand. 



H. scabrum, must be kept very humid and rather airy. 40' to 65'. 

 New Zealand. 



H. tunbridgense, grows on mossy rocks or in chinks of rock, and 

 should be kept very humid and rather airy ; avojd wetting the fronds, 

 as they quickly become discoloured. 40' to 65°. Well known to be a 

 British species. 



H. nnilaterale (Wilsoni), grows on mossv wet rocks, and should be 

 kept very humid bat airy. 35° to 60°. British species. 



Trichomanes elougatum, 6 inches to 1 foot high. Tufted. Requires 

 a very humid and rather close atmosphere. 40° to 63°. New Zealand. 

 T. exsectum, creeping, on ledges of rock. Must have a very humid 

 and rather close atmosphere. 40° to t)o°. Chili. 



T. radicans fspeciosum), flourishes on rather mossy moist grit. It 

 needs a very humid and rather close shady atmosphere. 40° to 70°. 

 Ireland, also Madeira. 



T. radicans Audi-ewsii. The fronds of this are lanceolate instead of 

 triangular-ovate as in the species, and it fruits freely. 



T. reniforme, creeping on mossy rocks. A very humid and rather 

 well-ventilated atmosphere. 40° to 70°. New Zealand. 



T. venosum, should be grown on the trunk or part of a tree Fern, 

 and must be kept very humid but rather airy. 40° to 65°. 



To the above may be added tlie three Todeas — viz., arborea. australis, 

 and pellucida, wliich should be planted in peat, pieces of sandstone or 

 grit, a little leaf moulcl. and sand, affording a rather airy situation, and 

 no water over the fronds. 



A correspondent wishes to know the reason of the fronds of 

 Filmy Ferns becoming brown. This, as far as I have expe- 

 rience, is the result of variable humidity, they being sometimes 

 dripping wet and at others quite dry. E.«essive moisture will, 

 in many cases, cause the evil, especially when there have been 

 heavy syringings, which should be avoided, as water ought never 

 to fall upon .them with force, but always like dew ; at the same 

 time the atmosphere should be kept constantly humid. Some 

 kinds will not endure much syringing over the fronds, and all 

 are better if the requisite amoimt of moisture can be kept up 

 without it ; but in many cases this cannot be done. A frequent 

 cause of the fronds becoming brown, is their being stifled under 

 glass shades, the moisture remaining on the fronds from morn- 

 ing to evening. A little air would in such cases make all right, 

 but if air be admitted excessively, the young fronds will perish 

 before they unfold, and the same result, along with browning of 



] tlie fronds, takes place in a very close atmosphere. Filmy Ferns 

 like most other plants require fresh air. moisture, and water, 

 but the air must not reduce the humidity of the atmosphere, 

 which must be constant, and water should not be allowed to 

 lodge but pass away freely, it being as freely replaced. 



I may now offer some remarks on the culture <if Filmy Ferns 

 in ordinary ferneries. These seldom possess sufficient humi- 

 dity, but the plants may be grown in them in cave- like recesses 

 made for the purpose, and which may be forme.l of grit or 

 sandstone. Tliese should not be deep, otherwise tbey will be 

 too gloomy. If a pipe can be carried over the recess, so that 

 by opening a tap a slight run of water can be produced over the 

 top, the water percolating through the crevices of the stone 

 roof will fall from the latter in large drops on a large stone 

 forming the bottom of the cave or recess, and will be thrown 

 on the stones or rock for some height and distance. This 

 will be sufiScient in most cases to afford a constant supply 

 of moisture by the evaporation continually going on, and is far 

 superior to any syringings ; but when it cannot be adopted 

 every surfacp must be sprinkled twice daily. The finest-rosed 

 s.vringe only should be employed. If the" house is sufficiently 

 humid, every morning the fronds will be covered with minute 

 dew-like drops of water, and if it is not so moist as this the 

 plants will soon become brown, and tlie young fronds perish. 

 It is useless attempting the growth of Filmy Ferns in an ordi- 

 nary fernery unless suitable places are provided for them, for, 

 as before remarked, it is seldom sufficiently moist, or if it is, it 

 will be too much so for some kinds of Ferns, especially in winter 

 when their fronds are mature. For this reason Filmy Ferns 

 are generally grown under glass shades, where, however well 

 I cared for, tht-y seldom remain long healthy, which is mainly 

 to be attributed to the closeness of the atmosphere. 



The pans in which the plants are grown cannot be too well 

 drained, and should be filled with the compost already men- 

 tioned, the plants being placed in the centre, and the surface 

 of the soil covered with pieces of sandstone, but not entirely. 

 The shades should rest upon fine pieces of grit, and any water 

 that may be necessary for moistening the roots should be 

 poured upon the glass, and should pass clear away, and not 

 be retained about the i-oots by having the pans in saucers 

 filled with water. To maintain the requisite degree of humi- 

 dity the shades should be removed, and the plants sprinkled 

 overhead once or twice a-day, or once or tu'ice a-week, as may 

 be necessary, in order to have the shades covered with moisture 

 every morning, and the fronds studded with minute drops of 

 dew from the condensation during the night. To keep the plants 

 healthy there should be one hole at the top of the glass for the 

 admission of fresh air, or the escape of that which is vitiated, 

 and two or three holes when the shades are large. Different 

 species of course vary in respect to the treatment they 

 should receive, but .all require air, constant humidity, and a 

 free, moist, sweet soil. With stagnant water in the soU and 

 an excessively humid and close atmosphere, they wiU not 

 thrive; in fact, some kinds require so much fresh air that 

 they soon become unhealthy under glass shades. The shades 

 should be taken off occasionally and wiped dry, and if this is 

 done every morning all the better, replacing them before the 

 fronds become dry. So important, indeed, is fresh air to this 

 class of Ferns, that it is preferable to grow them in Wardian 

 cases with moveable lights, placed in houses having the re- 

 quisite temperature and shade. In cases, the plants can be 

 well provided with every essential to their growth ; those which 

 grow on wood can be placed on logs laid in a suitable posi- 

 tion, all can be readily syringed, any amount of water may be 

 given, and they can be seen at any time. In any ordinary 

 fernery the lights of the case may be" half, or fully open, as the 

 sides will prevent an undue amount of moisture being dissi- 

 pated, and an excess of it may be dispelled by raising the 

 lights, whilst that which is necessary can be secured by shutting 

 them partially, or completely. At night the lights should be 

 fully or nearly closed to promote condensation and the de- 

 position of dew on the fronds, and if the moisture is not ex- 

 cessive it will not do more than hang in the finest possible 

 drops on the fronds of the beautiful and delicate-textured 

 Filmy Fern. — G. Abbey. • 



CUTTING BOX EDGINGS. 



As the season for catting the edgings of walks has now arrived, 

 I write to recommend the grass-edging shears for cutting Box 

 edgmg. I have used them for many years, and I find them 



