=a 
1900 SUPPLEMENT—RECENT INTRODUCTIONS, 
Asplenium—confinued. 
flabby and otherwise begin to show symptoms of ill- 
health. With the exception of a few dwarf species, 
which grow naturally in walls or im fissures of rocks, 
Aspleniums, above all, dislike being potted hard. 
Many of them will stand the full rays of the 
sun under glass, but it is not beneficial in ‘any way to 
the plants, which, instead of being of a healthy, bright, 
shining green colour, as nearly all of them are when in 
good condition, have a yellowish tint, although they may 
perhaps be hardier than those grown in partial shade. 
Being native of countries very distant from one another, 
and being found wild under totally different conditions, 
it will be easily understood that Aspleniums require 
varied treatment, and, on that account, while some kinds 
really need stove temperature to develop their foliage to 
perfection, others do well in a greenhouse temperature, 
while a few of them may even be used with advantage 
for the ornamentation of the hardy Fernery. Although 
the majority of the 
hardier kinds—even 
our own A. marinunr 
—grow very well for 
a time under the in- 
fluence of strong arti- 
ficial heat, it must 
be borne in mind 
that they are much 
more robust, although 
of slower growth, 
when kept in a lower 
temperature. 
A considerable 
number of exotic 
Aspleniums are either 
viviparous or at least 
proliferous at their 
apex. In either case 
if there is a desire 
to increase the stock 
of any particular vivi- 
parous or prolifevous 
species, the portion 
of the fronds bearing 
the rudiments of 
young plants should 
be pegged down to 
the soil, and be kept 
moderately moist, 
when they will soon 
root. 
When Aspleniums 
have to be produced 
in large quantities— 
such, for instance, as 
the kinds belonging 
to the bulbiferum group, which for decorative purposes are 
raised by the thonsand—market growers find it more 
expeditious to detach the little bulbils when furnished 
with two or three tiny fronds, and to prick them in 
close together in shallow boxes filled with a loose 
compost of three parts peat or leaf-mould, one of 
loam,-and one of sand: in this they produce roots very 
freely, and rapidly form young plants, which may be‘ 
potted singly as soon as they have from six to eight 
fronds. None of the British Aspleniums are konwn to 
possess these viviparous or proliferous characters, and 
their propagation is usually effected by division of 
their crowns, although they may with advantage be 
Fig. 91. FROND OF ASPIDIUM TRIPTERON. 
‘increased from spores, which mostly ripen in the autumn 
and germinate freely during the following spring. 
The genus Asplenium is unusually rich in decorative 
species and varieties, and comparatively few require 
‘special treatment. A. Fabianwm is, however, one that 
&C. 95 
Asplenium—continued. 
does. It succeeds when grown in peat and sand alone, 
and will be found to produce fronds of large dimensions, 
and especially bright as to colour. The Fern is admirably 
adapted for table-decoration. for vases, &e. It is 
perfectly evergreen, and very good-sized plants with a 
quantity of foliage may be grown in pots of comparatively 
small size. 
Very decorative, too, is A. caudatwm, an easily-grown 
Fern, requiring a mixture of peat and sand only. On 
account of the gracefully pendulous character of its 
fronds, this species is very well adapted for growing in 
hanging-baskets of large dimensions. The whole plant 
is of a beautiful dark, glossy green, which contrasts 
agreeably with the colour of the conspicuous fructification. 
The fronds, being of leathery texture, remain a long 
time on the plant. A. formoswm is another species 
which must be grown in peat and sand, with the addition 
of a little crock-dust. Loam it does not like. 
Noteworthy in connection with this genus is thie fact 
that it contains several of our finest native Ferns, 
though unfortunately these are not as readily accom- 
modated as are some of the exotics. One of the 
prettiest and most interesting of all such Ferns 
is A. Ceterach. It is not at all easy to cultivate 
successfully; it is too impatient of confinement to 
live long in a greenhouse, and the cold frame, so 
useful for the protection of other half-hardy species, is 
almost certain death*to this. So wrote an experienced 
cultivator, Mr. Charles Johnson, more than a quarter of 
a century since. Further, he said that it universally 
seemed to prefer a calcareous habitat; and those who 
have seen it in a state of Nature can testify to that 
fact. Other points to be observed in its cultivation are 
ample drainage, whether in the open or in pots, and in 
the latter case it is, moreover, necessary to avoid wetting 
the fronds when watering. 
Another native gem is the Black Maidenhair Spleen- 
wort (A. nigrum), which, on account of the lasting 
qualities of its foliage, has taken a prominent position. 
Its dark, shining fronds, when cut and mixed with flowers, 
retain their freshness for an almost unlimited time ; 
they are of elegant outline, and are produced in great 
abundance. It is found very plentifully ia Cornwall, 
Devonshire, Somerset, Hampshire, and in some other 
counties, in shady places at the foot of trees and shrubs, 
as also along the hedges, in meadows, on old walls, and 
in disused quarries. These are the positions in which the 
fronds attain their greatest size, but the Fern will also bear 
continued exposure to sunshine, and when growing thus 
it is very dwarf and of a yellowish colour. It is ulso 
very useful for pot culture, as it thrives under glass in 
the cool house, even better than it does in the outdoor 
Fernery. The best soil for this Fern is a mixture of 
leaf-mould, sandy loam, lime rubbish, and fibrous peat 
in about equal parts. Propagation may be effected 
by means of spores, which are ripe about September ; 
or by the divisions of the crowns during March and 
April. 
Distinct and beautiful again is another native—the Lady 
Fern, one of the easiest grown and most decorative of 
all British Ferns. Mx. 8. Moore thus writes of its require- 
ments in * British Ferns”: When placed about rockwork 
it should occupy a low, boggy situation at the base of 
the rock, being planted amongst turfy soil, kept thoroughly 
moistened, either naturally or artificially. It is far less 
beautiful if planted in dry, exposed situations. Few 
hardy plants which can be introduced among rockwork 
are so thoronghly lovely as a vigorous Lady Fern, placed 
just within the mouth of a cavernous recess large enough 
to admit of its development and just open enough that 
the light of day may gleam across the dark background 
suflicient to reveal the drooping, feathery fronds; and. 
what is more, it will delight to grow in such a situation 
