26 Ferns and Fern Culture. 
matter of great value to living plants. To obtain it, 
grass sods should be taken from a field, stacked up grass 
side down, layer upon layer, and allowed to remain so 
for afew months. It will then be found that the grass 
and the roots are dead. It should be chopped sufficiently 
small for potting purposes, and it will form the basis of 
a grand compost for Ferns. When the sods are cut from 
the field, they should be only so thick as to include the 
roots, three or four inches being the depth of soil to be 
taken from the surface; thus a mass of fibre is secured 
without the looser material into which the roots had 
not penetrated, and which, though often good, is not 
nearly so valuable as the fibrous part. Any stray living 
roots found in the loam when about to be used should, 
of course, be thrown out. Whenever loam is mentioned 
in this treatise, the term applies to the kind here 
described. 
LEAF MOULD. 
Leaf mould, or leaf soil, consists of decayed leaves. In 
woods and plantations, when the leaves fall from the 
trees in autumn, they are often blown into hollow places 
or ditches. There they gradually decay and form a rich, 
light, spongy mass of mould, containing the very elements 
in which Ferns revel. This is a natural production of the 
highest value. The best is that made up of oak and 
beech leaves. These should be obtained if possible; if 
unprocurable, then any other kind may be substituted. 
In places where the fallen leaves have been left undis- 
turbed for a long time, this rich mould may be found of 
considerable depth. The number of fibrous roots and 
plants growing in this deposit testifies plainly to its 
value. Those who are not in the vicinity of woods, 
where leaves have accumulated naturally, may provide a 
supply by having the leaves in their gardens or along 
the sides of the roads and lanes, collected and placed in a 
heap in some out-of-the-way corner, where, exposed to 
the weather, they will decay, and in the course of a year 
or less will be sufficiently decomposed for use. The 
leaves, when collected, should either be in an enclosure, 
or have some branches placed over them to prevent their 
