FENNEL. 



172 



FERN CASES. 



Fennel. 



Fennel may be raised from seed in 

 April or May, The seed should be 

 covered lightly with fine mould, and, 

 when the plants are strong enough, they 



may be set out in a bed about a foot apart. 

 A good bed of fennel will last for years ; 

 but to insure fine leaves, the flower-stalks 

 should always be cut oft" as soon as they 

 appear, so as never to ripen seed. 



Fern Cases. 



In planting fern cases, it is best to 

 choose sorts of very dwarf, compact habit. 

 This will allow for a little drawing up of 

 the fronds from confinement. A mixture 

 of loam, leaf-mould, and sand will be best 

 for them to grow in ; but it should be 

 liberally mixed up with broken pieces of 

 sandstone, or broken flowerpots, and small 

 pieces of charcoal. These will hold a 

 supply of moisture without stagnating ; 

 but water should not remain unabsorbed, 

 so that the cases must be provided with 

 suitable drainage ; and although the con- 

 finement of the case will agree with many 

 ferns, yet some ventilation is necessary to 

 prevent damp and mouldiness, otherwise 

 every frond or dead piece of leaf that 



touches the glass will cause a general 

 decay. 



Fernery, Indoor. The construction of 

 the indoor fernery is similar to that of any 

 glazed structure, but its position should be 

 exactly opposite to that of the conserva- 

 tory or greenhouse that is to say, it 

 should front to the north, north-east, or 

 north-west, while the frontage of the 

 greenhouse should be to the south, south- 

 east, or south-west. In the arrangement 

 of the interior, too, there is a marked 

 difference, the greenhouse being furnished 

 with shelves and stages at various heights 

 for the support of the plants, made, 

 generally speaking, of laths or battens, 

 and the fernery with brackets, pockets, 

 platforms, and terraces, to which a rustic 

 appearance is imparted by giving these 

 structures, large and small, an ornamental 

 facing of " virgin cork," as this material is 

 generally called, and such forms as may be 

 best calculated to set off the beauty of the 

 foliage of the ferns that are placed in 

 them. Virgin cork may be obtained of 

 most nurserymen and seedsmen at about 

 3d. per lb., or in bales of 56 Ib. from us. 

 to I2s. 6d. per bale, 112 lb. from 2os to 

 255. 



Fernery, Outdoor. The fernery out of 

 doors must be stocked exclusively with 

 hardy British and exotic ferns. Of these 

 none will bear the light and heat of the 

 summer sun in full force, and a situation 

 should be chosen for it which is shady and 

 near water, or in which water can be 

 supplied by artificial means. By this it 

 must not be taken for granted that any 

 moist, dank spot will do for ferns ; on the 

 contrary, they like good drainage as well 

 as shade and moisture, and efficient 

 drainage should always be provided. The 

 moisture in which they most delight is a 

 humid atmosphere, and a moisture cun- 

 ningly created by artificial means, and 

 consisting of drips and splashes that fall 



