98 HOW TO KNOW THE FERNS 



The only way to secure the plant safely for 

 cultivation is to cut up a piece of turf, and remove 

 the whole thing into a position where the soil is 

 moist and rich. The Common Adder's Tongue 

 is not very often cultivated, as from the gar- 

 dener's point of view its decorative value is 

 small. The new frond of the Common Adder's 

 Tongue is fully developed by June, and it dis- 

 appears early in the autumn. 



Ophioglossum lusitanicum. Here the specific 

 name is taken from Lusitania, the old designa- 

 tion of Portugal a reference to the fact that 

 the species is abundant in that country, as in- 

 deed it is in other parts of Southern Europe. 

 The Little Adder's Tongue. 



This plant is really a miniature addition of 

 the former species. There is no doubt, how- 

 ever, that it is to be regarded as a distinct type, 

 although at one time it was thought to be 

 merely a variety of 0. vulgatum. 



As far as the United Kingdom is concerned 

 the Little Adder's Tongue has only been dis- 

 covered in one or two localities. Some years 

 ago it was stated to have been found in Corn- 

 wall, and it certainly used to occur in Guernsey. 



Botrychium lunaria. The generic name in 

 this case comes from a Greek word which means 

 " a cluster," this being a reference to the 

 packed son of the fertile pinnae. The specific 

 name comes from the Latin luna, " the moon," 

 an allusion to the curiously-shaped pinnae on 

 the barren part of the frond. The Moonwort. 



This is an interesting species which is easily 

 distinguished from the Adder's Tongue. The 

 plant has a fleshy root-stock from which arises 

 a frond divided into two parts, a leafy portion 

 and a fertile branch. The whole frond is about 

 six or eight inches in height, and the stipes is 



