THE FERN PARADISE. 



shade. Ordinarily it grows to a height of a little 

 more than a foot, but occasionally it grows to 

 more than double this height. The fronds are of 

 two kinds barren and fruitful, the fertile ones 

 being taller than the others. The stem of the 

 barren frond is long, thin, green in colour, and 

 exceedingly fragile. The leafy portion is lance - 

 shaped. The rachis is thin, green, and fragile like 

 the stipes, and on each side of it at intervals, 

 sometimes opposite in pairs, and sometimes placed 

 irregularly are the branches, narrow and lance- 

 shaped, but usually somewhat blunt-pointed. 

 These branches are again divided not quite down 

 to their mid-stems, but almost so into oblong 

 blunt-pointed lobes or leaflets. The divisions 

 between the lobes are very regular and symmetri- 

 cal, and go down so deeply between the lobes as to 

 leave only a narrow leafy wing or expansion along 

 the upper and under parts of the mid-stems. 



About the entire aspect of the Marsh Buckler 

 Pern there is something exceedingly delicate and 

 fragile, and the colour is a most exquisite light 

 shade of green. We shall not easily forget our 

 first adventure in search of the Marsh Fern. We 



358 



