658 CRYPTOGAMIA FILICES. 



The root is vifcid, naufeous and bitterllli, and, 

 like all the reft of the Fern tribe, has a fait mu- 

 cilaginc us tafte. It creeps under the ground in 

 Tome rich foils to the depth of five or fix tc:t, 

 and is very difficult to be def^royed. Frequent 

 mowing in pafture grounds, plentiful dunging 

 in arable lands, but, above all, pouring urine 

 upon it, are the moft approv'd methods of 

 killing it. It has, however, many good quali- 

 ties to counterbalance the few bad ones. Fern 

 cut while green, and left to rot upon the ground, 

 is a good improver of land ; for its afhcs, if 

 burnt, Will yield double the quantity of fait that 

 moft other vegetables will. 



Fern is alfo an excellent manure for potatoes, for 

 if buried beneath their roots, it never fails to 

 produce a good crop. 



Its ufe as a good litter in the ftable and the fold is 

 known to every farmer -, as alfo that it makes a 

 brifk fire, when dry'd, for the purpofes of brew- 

 ing and baking. 



Its aftringency is fo great that It Is ufed In many 

 places abroad, in drefTing and preparing kid and 

 chamois leather. 



In feveral places in the North the inhabitants mow 

 it green, and, burning it to afhes, make thofe 

 afhes up into balls, with a little water, which 

 they dry in the fun, and make ufe of them to 

 walh their linen with inftead of foap. 



In 



