HOW TO PROPAGATE FERNS. 



other ferns in the collection. If the fern to be 

 divided is one of the hardy species in the out-door 

 fernery, this process should not be attempted ex- 

 cept during the resting period, either early in the 

 spring, or late in the fall. The former time is to 

 be preferred. Indeed, it is never judicious to 

 meddle with plants when actually growing; al- 

 though, even at such times, a " shift " or division 

 may be compulsory. It must always be managed 

 with great care. 



Other ferns, as Adiantum, Stnlthiopteris, and 

 Woodwardia, have underground stems, but produce 

 their fronds in little tufts at the ends of these. In 

 Adiantum the stems do not wander far, and may 

 be easily discovered by removing for examination 

 almost any species of this genus from its pot 

 when it seems to be ready for removal to a larger 

 one. The stems are lighter in color than the 

 roots, and have a few fronds coiled up closely at 

 their ends. It is this habit which renders the 

 Adiantum so desirable for a basket-fern, particu- 

 larly for the cocoanut-shell referred to elsewhere. 

 In the case of the Ostrich Fern (Strut hiopteris), 

 these underground stems are always a source of 

 great astonishment. They frequently creep away 

 to a distance of four or five feet before re-ap- 

 pearing, and then quietly throw up their vase-like 

 forms where they are, perhaps, least expected. A 

 in the writer's collection made its way under 



