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A CULTIVATION AND ANALYSIS OF PLANTS. Mi 
HHRNS. 
= <j NOWN to science as Filices, from the Latin, these flowerless plants 
toe possess a characteristic charm in their peculiar leafage or fronds. 
The many pretty forms of these leaves, and the various shades and 
tints of color, from a pure bright green to a golden yellow, are among 
nature’s loveliest products. They constitute a remarkable family of the 
class designated Acrogenous, from two Greek words that signify increas- 
ing in growth from the extremity, which is one of the most conspicuous 
classes of the Cryptogamous or Flowerless series. The whole Fern family, or 
Order of Filices, is divided into eight suborders, six of which are represented 
in the United States. It is only within a comparatively recent period that these 
lovely members of the vegetable kingdom have been thought worthy of a place 
in collections of plants. Lacking the common element of conspicuous flowers, 
with their accompanying attractions of brilliant coloring and fascinating fragrance, the 
Ferns had long failed to elicit the admiration they deserve. But a more refined taste has 
learned to fully appreciate their merits, and specimens are now brought together from 
nearly every quarter of the world to adorn gardens, conservatories and parlors. In fact 
many wealthy admirers build greenhouses for their exclusive cultivation. Some Ferns 
from tropical and subtropical climes often have a tree-like appearance, while others from 
colder regions are so dwarfish that they have frequently been mistaken for mosses by 
those not possessed of a thorough and discriminating botanical knowledge. Many of 
them succeed well as common house-plants when kept out of drying winds or currents 
of cold air, care being taken to dampen their fronds daily. Some are hardy enough to 
endure excessive heat as well as ordinary winds, with the simple provision of supplying 
enough of moisture at the roots. The Lomeria Gibbii will even grow best in a strong 
sunshine; also the Scolopendrium vulgare, the Polypodium vulgare, and the Adiantum 
capillis-veneris will grow well in an exposed situation. Some Ferns, as the Adiantum 
cuneatum, A. trapeziforme, A. Farleyense, Lygodium palmatum, and many others, will 
only grow well in moist, still situations, as in a Wardian case or in a quiet nook sheltered 
by other plants. 
As a generally good, manufactured soil for most Ferns, chopped sphagnum, or gray 
bog-moss, common loam, broken charcoal or potsherds, and sharp, silver sand, all well 
mixed in about equal parts, cannot be surpassed. 
Ferns are often found growing on inaccessible rocks near mountain streams, or in the 
valleys, in the woods or on the prairies, varying in size and form. One that most delights 
in rocky places, is a curiosity of its kind, and is familiarly known as the Traveling Fern. 
Its leaves bend over until the tips touch the earth, where they readily strike root and form 
new plants. These doing likewise, the whole constitute a network of Ferns often cover- 
ing several square yards. All the foregoing species of Ferns are evergreens, and every 
house or yard may be beautifully decorated ‘at little or no expense by a collection of 
native Ferns, the many and various members of which may be picked up in country 
rambles. A good guide to their successful cultivation would be to note the soil and loca- 
ly tion where they naturally flourish best, and endeavor to reproduce in their new home the ' 
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