THE STKUCTURE OF FERKS. 15 



term Jloicer in its popular sense, ■without entering into 

 points of speculative botany), so that it is in the fronds 

 that we must seek for that ornamental aspect ■which renders 

 them such general favourites. The fronds alone, however, 

 afford almost endless variety : — some are very large, others 

 very small ; some quite simple and not at all divided, 

 others divided beyond computation into little portions or 

 segments, and it is these much-divided fronds •which, 

 generally speaking, are the most elegant. 



Even in the few species which are natives of Britain, 

 this variety of size and form is very obvious, some kinds 

 not being more than two or three inches, others five to six 

 feet or more in height, — some quite simple, and others cut 

 into innumerable small segments. There is much variety 

 of texture too ; some being thin and delicate, almost trans- 

 parent, others thick and leathery, and some perfectly rigid ; 

 while as to colour, some are pale green, some are deep 

 green, some are blue-green, some dark brownish, scarcely 

 green at all ; and as regards their surface, some are smooth 

 and shining, others opaque, and some few arc covered with 

 hair-like scales. 



The duration of the fronds of many species is compara- 

 tively short : they come up in spring, and in some cases 



