NATIVE FERNS 143 
If ferns are grown on rockeries, there must. be special 
crevices between the rocks, so that the roots can strike 
deep down into the soil that has been prepared for them. 
Every fern rockery should have a depth of from one to 
two feet of sandy peat mixed with an abundant supply 
of leaf mold, to afford a roothold and to supply the 
necessary moisture and food. 
Ferns may be transplanted after the leaves fall in 
autumn, or in the spring before the leaves open. Spring 
transplanting will not retard the growth materially if 
all the soil which clings to the roots is taken up with 
them. Set the plants as deep as they stood in their 
native places. The leaves will not unfold readily if the 
crowns are covered with soil. Keep leaf mold around 
them and give them an abundance of water. 
