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and uncultivated ground, in woods and thickets, and on rocky 

 hills, especially about pools and water-courses. Its continental 

 distribution is wide, extending from Swedish Lapland to the bor- 

 ders of the Mediterranean. The barren fronds, which remain 

 throughout the winter, are always more or less spreading in their 

 habit, and, where uninterrupted by surrounding vegetation, gene- 

 rally prostrate; they are pinnatifid, smooth, dark green, and leafy 

 nearly to the base, the leafless portion of the rachis being shaggy 

 with lanceolate membranaceous scales; the segments are linear, 

 flat, obtuse at the extremity, more or less approximate, and re- 

 markably regular in disposition : the ordinary length of these 

 fronds is from six to twelve inches. The fertile fronds are always 

 erect, from one to two feet in height, and distantly pinnated : the 

 pinnae are contracted, linear, generally pointed, and with the mar- 

 gins recurved, not above half the width of the barren segments, 

 one to two inches in length on the upper half of the rachis, but 

 little more than rudimentary below : the rachis is in most in- 

 stances of a dark purple hue, smooth and glossy. The peculiarity 

 in venation above described, in the remarks on the generic charac- 

 ter, does not belong to the barren frond, the lateral veins of the 

 lobes branching dichotomously about the middle, and their divi- 

 sions extending to the margin, the main or upper branches not 

 anastomosing. The fertile fronds may be found from May to 

 October, but they soon wither away after the dispersion of the 

 sporules. 



Like most other ferns, this is liable to deviate from the normal 

 character, and occasionally such deviations may under peculiar 

 treatment become permanent in cultivation, but my own experience 

 has not confirmed this : it is true that specimens sometimes occur 

 in which the frond of Blechnum boreale is divided at the extremity, 

 and more frequently, in which the intended fertile frond has all of 

 its pinnae abortive, the rachis merely developing their rudiments ; 

 but I have found the recurrence of such monstrosities too uncer- 

 tain to admit of enrolling them as varieties. 



It is a highly beautiful fern, well worthy of cultivation as an 

 evergreen little liable to injury by frost, and, during the summer, 

 presenting an elegant contrast in its varied fronds, and a habit 

 totally dissimilar to that of all our larger species. In moving it 

 from its natural habitat, care should be taken to bring away as 

 much of the soil as convenience will admit ; otherwise our labours 

 will be probably disappointed, as it does not readily form new 

 roots. From want of attention to this circumstance I used to 

 regard it as one diflicult to establish, a character quite undeserved, 

 as few of our native species are more readily naturalized in the 

 garden. When planted among rock- work, it must be so placed as 

 to receive abundant moisture, and the soil employed should be more 



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