370 



'The Gardener's Journal ' for 1848; but our publishing botanists — 

 Moore, Hooker & Arnott, and Babington— have subsequently ignored 

 it as a species. 



PSEUDATHYRIUM ALPESTRE, Ncwm. 



The other novelty is a plant which I propose to consider as the type 

 of a new genus (see below). I believe it is now generally considered an 

 Athyrium, and some botanists even contend that it is merely a form 

 of Filix-femina. I allude to the Aspidium alpestre of Hoppe (Tasch. 

 p. 216 (1805)), and of Schkuhr (Handbuch, 58) ; the Polypodium 

 alpestre of [Koch, Sadler and others; the Aspidium rhoeticum of 

 Swartz; and the Polypodium rhoeticum of Woods, in his lately-pub- 

 lished 'Tourists' Flora.' Like the two preceding species, this has 

 been so fully described, that there is no necessity for any addition of 

 mine. 



The only specimen I have seen, was gathered by Mr. Watson, in 

 Canlochen Glen, Forfarshire, in 1846, and has been most obhgingly 

 placed in my hands by that gentleman. 



The similarity of this plant to Athyrium Filix-femina, is beyond all 

 doubt; the habit, figure, texture, and the physical properties of the 

 fronds are all but identical ; but there is a difference in the fruiting, 

 wich is not that of a mere variety or casualty of any kind, and which, if 

 disregarded by the scientific botanist, must disturb all those combi- 

 nations of groups in which the characters of the fructification have 

 been employed as of primary importance. I am not forgetful that 

 one of our greatest botanists has expressed an opinion at variance 

 with that generally received on this subject; and I trust that I do 

 not, in the least, undervalue an opinion pronounced by such high 

 authority ; but I cannot help feeling that, for many years, the fructi- 

 fication of ferns will be regarded as of primary, and the outline of 

 frond as of secondary importance. Entertaining this view, and 

 seeing that a great number of subdivisions of the Linnean genus Po- 

 lypodium have been created, so to speak, it is all but compulsory to 

 raise to generic rank those other groups of that gigantic family which 

 still remain uncharacterized. 



The three new genera are these : — 



Genus. — Pseudathyrium. 



Finn. v. pinnul. vents lateral, ramosis apice liberis, ramo antico 

 capsulifero : sorts rotundis, semper distinctis in ram. capsulif. dorso 

 siiis : involucro nullo. 



