36 Ferns and Fern Culture 
should be placed in light, airy’ positions, many of them in 
cool houses, just protected during winter from the frost. 
They must be attended to carefully, so that they may 
not suffer from lack of water, as their compost, being 
very porous, will allow the water to escape quickly. In 
summer they will require an abundant supply, but in 
winter only enough to keep them just damp. 
The British Aspleniums, Ceterach and Cystopteris, 
have the same habits, and should be treated in like man- 
ner when cultivated in pots. 
Lygodiums, Lygodictyon and Salpichloena volubilis 
are climbers. They usually grow among bushes and 
trees, producing fronds many yards in length, taking hold 
of and climbing round any twig or branch with which 
they come in contact. They soon produce great tangled 
masses of foliage, while some of the fronds, taking an 
upward course, reach the tops of the trees. Most of the 
species form buds in the axils of the branches and at the 
apices of the fronds. From these fresh growth takes 
place the following year. As this is repeated again and 
again the fronds attain an indefinite length. This habit 
of growth necessitates support for the foliage. They may 
be trained up sticks or twine in pyramidal form; on wire 
netting in the shape of a cylinder three or four feet 
high, and the width in proportion to the size of the pot 
in which the plant is growing; on wire balloons; up 
perpendicular wires leading to the roof, and then hori- 
zontally along other wires. If planted at the base of 
pillars or of wire archways they may be trained so as to 
form ‘a beautiful verdant covering ; and if in a border, 
with stakes driven into the ground and wires stretched 
to the roofs, they may be employed to hide many an 
unsightly wall. 
Filmy Ferns, consisting of the genera Hymenophyl- 
lum, Trichomanes, and Todea (excepting one or two of 
the latter), are a most beautiful and interesting section. 
Their fronds are thin and membranaceous in substance. 
Their peculiarly delicate nature necessitates their being 
constantly in a moisture-laden atmosphere. They are 
found in both tropical and temperate climates, but 
always in positions where it is cool, shaded, and damp. 
