134 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



MEETING FOR DISCUSSION. 



W. H. Hallida}^ read the following paper in continuation of that 

 presented by him January 29th : 



Wardian Cases and Ferneries. II. 



BY W. H. HALLIDAY. 



Plant cases, as we know them, are classed under two heads. 

 First, the Wardian case, in which are grown foliage plants, 

 ferns, etc. ; plants too large or too coarse to look well in a 

 small case. Although the first Ward's case was only a bottle, in 

 which by accident Mr. Ward discovered that plant life could be 

 sustained, from some cause or other we seem to have adopted the 

 name Fernery for cases that are covered with a glass shade, in 

 which only the more delicate or smaller varieties of ferns are cul- 

 tivated. The schedule of this Society limits the size of the fern- 

 case to fifteen inches iu diameter. 



In drawing a line between the Wardian case and fernery, the 

 Flower Committee ruled out a case put up for competition, that 

 was filled mostly with foliage plants, deciding that such plants 

 were not admissible to a fernery, except when they were of such 

 size and character as would not interfere with the general beauty 

 and harmony of the whole, and then' only in a small proportion to 

 the number of plants used. 



In this article I will endeavor to give some experience I have 

 had with cases varj'ing in size from four to fifteen inches in diam- 

 eter. 



The case may be made of tin, earthenware, or wood ; it matters 

 not which, so long as proper regard is had to drainage. This, as 

 in Wardian cases, is of vital importance to the healthful growth of 

 plants under the fern shade. I say this is of the first importayice, 

 as many persons who have the management of ferneries, use so 

 little judgment in their care, that, without a proper outlet for water, 

 the cases soon become perfectly sodden. I have seen more plants 

 destroyed in cases, from the want of drainage and from over- 

 watering, than from any other cause. Most of the failures I have 

 met with have arisen from either too much water or too little light, 



