66 ASPI.ENIUM TRICHOMANES. 



In the Section Trichomanes of Authors. 



The Common Maiden-hair Spleen wort is a lovely dwarf 

 British Fern, and so generally is it distributed throughout Great 

 Ih'itain, that it would be needless to enumerate localities. Its 

 usual habitats are ruins, rocks, old walls, churches, and some- 

 times on banks; extending from the sea-level to a height of 

 two thousand feet. In Ireland it is sometimes of larger size, 

 specimens having been found above a foot in length, having 

 thirty pairs of pinnae. 



Its geographical distribution is great, extending throughout 

 Europe — to Greece on the east side, and Spain on the west; 

 INIadeira, Cape of Good Hope, Persia, India, Siberia, Aus- 

 tralia, Van Dieman's Land, United States, Mexico, Montreal, 

 Venezuela, Sandwich Islands, England, Wales, Scotland, and 

 Ireland. 



A hardy British Fern. 



The frond is narrow, linear, pinnate, with numerous pinna?, 

 which are irregularly ovate, crenate on the edges, truncate- 

 cuneate at the base, obtuse at the apex, terminal, adherent to 

 a tufted rhizoma. The length of the stipes is about a third of 

 that of the whole frond, glabrous, polished, and of a blackish 

 purple colour; in young fronds the rachis is green, but it soon 

 changes to a dark purple, the pinnse when past maturity 

 are apt to fall oiF, and to leave the rachis without pinnae; 

 this is more especially the case with the variety incisa, indeed 

 it seems very difficult to prevent their falling off the dried 

 specimens. 



Veins forked from the midvein. 



Sori a single row on each side the midrib of the pinnule, 

 arranged obliquely, linear in form, and eventually becoming 

 confluent. The seed vessels are inclosed in a white membranous 

 indusium. 



Length of frond from three to fourteen inches; colour of frond 

 deep green. 



On Plate XXXIX. of the "Nature-printed Ferns" are figured 

 a pretty series of varieties of Asplcnium tricliomanes , amongst 

 which arc the varieties incisum, cristatuniy depauperatum, ram- 

 osum, and multlfidum. 



