14 FERNS 



what ferns should be at home, and, although 

 a natural preference is manifested, ferns 

 possess greater adaptability than almost 

 any other plants. Most of our common 

 ferns will flourish in any decent soil, provided 

 it be light and porous. Where the ground 

 seems especially poor and hard, as it often 

 does under trees which have absorbed the 

 greater part of virtue and moisture for years, 

 the top soil should be removed and replaced 

 with something better. European growers 

 recommend a compost of equal parts of 

 rough peat, loam, leaf mould and coarse sand 

 for the majority, with added loam for vigor- 

 ous growing kinds, sandy peat for the most 

 delicate, and a sprinkling of old mortar for 

 limestone-loving ferns. 



Leaf mould pure and simple in my experi- 

 ence is the ideal soil for nearly all save the 

 latter class. The economical culturist learns 

 to save all bits of waste moss and small instal- 

 ments of wood's earth for the fern bed; thus 

 in time, with little trouble, a feast of fat things 

 may be obtained for epicurean species. 



