216 THE FERN PARADISE. 



on the rachis is shorter than the pair immediately 

 above it ; but from that pair to the point of the 

 frond the successive pairs gradually diminish 

 in length. The pairs of branches on each side 

 of the frond are not placed exactly opposite 

 one another, but according to a somewhat ir- 

 regular arrangement. The branches themselves 

 are distinctly lance-shaped ; and on each side, 

 above and below them, is a row of leaflets, 

 egg-shaped in general outline, and notched or 

 saw-edged. On the back of the fronds the little 

 bladder-like clusters of seeds are frequently so 

 plentiful that they become confluent. Although 

 somewhat rare in Ireland except in two or three 

 localities in that country it is nevertheless widely 

 distributed throughout the rest of the United 

 Kingdom ; being, indeed, in some places very 

 abundant. 



The delicate Brittle Bladder Fern is easily 

 grown. Give it leaf-mould, peat and sand, shade, 

 and an abundance of water, and whether with 

 such soil and subject to such conditions you place 

 It in a cool stony nook of your rockery, or in 



