101 



wards and inwards. Aspidium spinulosum, Swarfz. In damp woods 

 in low districts. 



"b. uliginosum, A.Br. — Stipes rather short, with few, scattered, 

 broadly ovate, short-pointed, brown-yellow scales; frond doubly pin- 

 nate, pinnatifid ; pinnae approximate, the inferior ones a little shorter 

 than the following; teeth of the leaflets rather short, sharp-pointed, 

 appressed (anliegend). (At Freiburg in the bog, with Asp. cristatum). 



"c. dilatatum (Aspid. dilatatum). — Rhizome nearly erect, thick; 

 frond fertile over the whole under-surface, curved back, dilated ; stipes 

 rather short, rather thickly clothed with ovate-lanceolate, acute scales, 

 which are dark brown in the middle ; frond fertile, nearly tripinnate, 

 at the base often tripinnate-pinnatifid ; pinnae long, pointed, the 

 lowest considerably shorter ; pinnules lanceolate, with smaller, more 

 distant segments, confluent at the base, more remote, and somewhat 

 aculeate teeth, which finally become bent back with the margin. It 

 grows in shady woods on the mountains and plains. 



" d. muticum, A. Br. — Stipes clothed with broader, pale scales; 

 pinnae largest at the base and below the middle; segments of the 

 pinnules confluent, and broad at the base, afterwards much contracted, 

 linear, obtuse, inciso-serrate ; sori nearly marginal, at the sinus between 

 the segments or teeth. (At Freiburg)." 



It will be perfectly evident to those who take an interest in this 

 subject that the named varieties are distinguished by Braun with great 

 botanical tact. We are perfectly familiar with three of these forms. 

 Elevatum and uliginosum are combined by Roth, and subsequently by 

 Newman, under the name of spinosa : elevatum generally grows in 

 woods, uliginosum in marshes. No one in this country has hitherto 

 admitted these to be ranked as varieties: dilatatum is the dilatatum, 

 spinulosum and dumetorum of Smith, the multiflora of Roth and New- 

 man. The fourth variety, muticum, is entirely unknown to us; the 

 name implying the absence of the terminal spine which distinguishes 

 the group might lead us to suspect that the A. rigidum, a fern so long 

 and obstinately confounded with this group by English authors, was 

 the form intended, but the marginal situation of the clusters of capsules 

 does not favour such a suggestion, and almost induces us to suppose 

 there is an European species of the genus yet undescribed. It must, 

 however, be observed in favour of the suggestion that rigidum is ab- 

 sent from Wirtgen's list, although decidedly a native of the district. 



Cystopteris fragilis. — None of the forms of this protean fern are 

 raised to specific honours. 



Asplen ium Trick omanes. 



