DECEMBER 135 



beauty all through the winter till the young fronds 

 begin to grow in the spring. But the polystichums are 

 absolutely evergreen, however severe the winter may 

 be, and there are few ferns, whether British or exotic, 

 that surpass them in beauty. It is the same with the 

 hartstongues (Scolopendria) and the polypodies, and all 

 their many varieties. Indeed, there are some of the 

 polypodies which are, I think, at their best in winter, 

 such as the Welsh polypody, and some others which 

 come rather near it. I know of no foliage plant in 

 winter that comes near to our Welsh polypody; in 

 summer it is not so valuable, because it comes into leaf 

 so very late, often not till nearly the end of July, but 

 once the leaves are fully formed it will bear comparison 

 with any. Though the typical polypody has a very wide 

 geographical range, the Welsh polypody is almost con- 

 fined to England and Wales, and is very rare in a wild 

 state. It is, however, abundant in Teneriffe, and has 

 been found wild in North America. There are also a 

 few foreign exotic ferns, which are very hardy and ever- 

 green, of which two very good ones are the Japanese 

 Cyrtomium, and the North American Polystichum 

 munitum, this last being, I think, the handsomest hardy 

 fern all through the year that I know. 



But though I think the garden must in December 

 largely depend on evergreen trees, variegated shrubs, 



