Section 1. 
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF FERNS. 
a ERNS have a wide geographical distribution, 
: and are found in almost every part of the 
world. One thing, however, is very notice- 
able—it is that while these plants are found 
sparingly in some localities, they abound in the greatest 
profusion in others. There, covering the ground, cloth- 
ing the mountain sides, creeping up the tree stems, 
hanging in festoons from the branches, they literally 
swarm on every side. The cause for this is the com- 
bination of warmth, moisture, shade, and shelter. 
Under such conditions Ferns and their near relatives, 
Selaginellas, revel. 
Here, then, there is an indication of the condition to 
be copied by cultivators, that such species as are not 
natives of our own country may be successfully culti- 
vated, and may present to their loving admirers some of 
the beauty and grace pertaining to them in their natural 
homes, where few are privileged to see them. 
There is probably no other order of plants which has 
so wide a distribution, and such varied positions and 
habits of growth. They range from the Tropics, where 
they are found in greatest profusion, to the Arctic 
regions, as far north as Greenland. They are found at 
the sea-level, and up to an altitude of 16,000ft. Some 
grow only in hot climates, others only in cold ; some in 
dense shade, others in full exposure to the scorching sun. 
They are found in damp, shady glens, gullies, forests, on 
