FER.VS. 



251 



tender green. The stipe is about a third the length of the frond, of a 

 dark chestnut colour at the lower part, smooth, shining and lax, in 

 young fronds almost thread-like. The rhizome is tufted, throwing out 

 an abundance of drooping fronds from small buds collected into a crown. 

 The rootlets are black, delicate, and numerous ; rhizome running, but 

 not extending to any length. The brown sori are numerous, but not 

 often confluent, situated at the base of each veinlet which terminates the 

 toothing divisions of the blunt and somewhat rounded pinnules. The 

 lower pinnai are smaller than the next three or four pairs, these last are 

 distant, curving upwards, becoming closer towards the summit of the 

 irond, but scarcely confluent on the rachis. On a fine specimen now 

 before me there are eighteen pairs of pinnre ; the whole length of this 

 elegant frond, from the root to the apex, measures eighteen inches, the 

 brown, shining stipe being about a third of the length of the foliaceous 

 portion. 



In the variety a/igusiata, iho. frond is more upright, of a darker 

 green ; from the narrowness of the pinnce and pinnules, the fruit dots 

 are closer, and form an almost continuous line, of a rich, dark brown 

 colour ; the closeness of the sharply toothed divisions gives an elegant 

 pale green fringed edging to the pinnules, the effect of which is very 

 graceful. The covering of the fruit dots soon breaks away, and the seeds 

 are ripe early in July. The extreme delicacy of texture in C. fragilis, 

 causes it to wither earlier than most of our ferns, especially if the 

 summer be very hot and dry ; it generally disappears early in August. 

 The seedling plants are very delicate, lovely little things. The root-stock 

 does not appear to increase much till after the third year, producing no 

 fruiting fronds till after that time. Thus, at least, I have concluded, after 

 ■close observation of the plants for several years past. 



There are many variations in the form of this fern, some fronds 

 being broader at the base, the pinnae closer set, and fruit dots more 

 distant, the stipe greener and shorter, and the toothing divisions more 

 sharply cut ; but I think it is merely a variation which may be found in 

 many plants rising from the same root-stock. 



I believe that a number of specimens lately gathered in the lime- 

 stone rocks on the Smith side of Lakefield may be referable to C- 

 dentata ; but as the plant presents distinctive characters I shall describe 

 it more particularly : 



Root-stock tufted, fil)rous ; fronds circinate ; stipe and rachis, 

 bright, reddish-brown, smooth and slender, the stalk rather waved than 

 drooping; colour bright light-green; pinnae horizontal, opposite; 

 pinnules bluntish, toothed, but not so much divided as in C. fragilis, 

 consequently the fruit dots are more distant, the veinlets being less 



