138 FERN GROWING 



up with your soil ; press it down gently and firmly. See 

 that there is a small space left within the inner side of the 

 pan and the bell-glass — this is for the purpose of putting 

 some packing between the glass and the pan. 



" Having filled the small pots, place them on a sieve, 

 then water them thoroughly with boiling water from a common 

 watering-pot with a fine rose ; repeat this application, then 

 allow them to drain and get cool. When cold, bring them 

 into a room, and be sure to have no open windows, that 

 there may be no draughts of air, as the atmosphere must 

 be quite still. Take each pot separately and away from the 

 others, label it, and powder the spores over it. [N.B. — It is 

 of course known that good spores are most prone to adhere 

 to the paper enclosing them, whilst mere spore-cases run 

 over and away from the paper with facility.) When all your 

 pots are sown and labelled, arrange them in the pan, and 

 place the bell-glass over them, being careful in so doing not 

 to disturb the soil. When you have placed the pan in some 

 shady place, take a good, clean, and damp sponge, tear it 

 up, and pack it between the bell-glass and the pan. These 

 pieces of sponge must be kept just full of water that has 

 been boiled and allowed to get cold ; the quantity of water 

 constantly added will draw underneath the surface of the 

 pots and supply them with sufficient moisture ; be careful at 

 all times not to flood the pan. This use of boiling water is 

 for the destruction of all animal and vegetable life, thus 

 giving room for the spores to make their growth undisturbed. 

 Never remove the bell-glass for three or four months. You 

 will see a gradual appearance of growth spreading over the 

 surface of the pots, and some time after this minute fronds ; 

 you may then insert a bit of slate beneath the glass, and 

 this is the first air they get ; increase the allowance of air, 

 and eventually remove the bell-glass. Never water overhead 

 until the growth is considerable, or the Ferns will damp off." 



