FERN 



FERX 



D/i) 



in slunk. an<l sunshiiK-, but will i;u>\y (.Mjually wrll in 

 rick suil only fairly moist. 



Osmunda rcyaUs prefers a peaty soil in vrry wet, 

 l^oggy position in partial shade, but will j^row as \v<-II iri 

 full snusliiuo if soil is rich and not dry. 



Pelkea atropurparea prefers rather dry positions in 

 partial shade, winter and summer, with soil not deti(M('nt 

 in lime. It will not endure heavy raulchini,^ Will <^y»\v 

 in full sunshine, but not to its full sizi.-. It may )h> 

 transplanted at any season. 



Phegopferls I}ri/opferL<i prefers good soil in shadu nut 

 over moist or dry. Avoid coatin'ti; of Icavt-s. It i^ a 

 beautiful species and useful for planting ..nrockwork in 

 shade. The fronds die in August. 



Phefjopd'ris liexacjonoptera needs good soil in shadr. 

 Fronds die down rather early. 



_ Fhegopleris poJijpodloidi's prefers moist, shaded posi- 

 tions, but will grow in any good soil not (oo drs". Tin- 

 fronds die down in late summer, espi_-riall\' in tin: dri^r 

 positions. 



Polijoodiam ruhjare prefers good, light soil in well 

 drained but moist situations in shade, with no other plants 

 growing with it. It will endure very dry places, but 

 will be dwarfed. Will also do well in full sunlight if 

 soil conditions are good. As a native it grows in" posi- 

 tions where it does not receive any yearly coating of 

 fallen leaves, and, wherever planted, should not be cov- 

 ered with coarse material. Plant perfectly evergreen; 

 height G-10 in. 



Pteris aqulUna, to bo grown to perfection, should 

 have considerable sunlight, with moist, rich soil, kejit 

 cool and loose with a coating of leaves or other mate- 

 rial. In such a position it should grow 4-5 ft. hi^di, with 

 other dimensions corresponding. However, it will grow 

 in almost any position. Although easy to transplant, it 

 is likely to do poorly until esta))lished. It has strong, 

 creeping rootstocks, so that attention is necessary to 

 keep a healthy group within bounds. The earliest 

 fronds put forth die in late summer, but those of latf.^r 

 growth remain green until frost, so that with attention 

 to the removal of dead fronds a group will look well 

 until fall. 



Woodivardia angustlfoHa wants a luoist situation! in 

 deep shade. Does well in moist peat north of a Itank or 

 wall. Will endure full sunlight in positions where it has 

 l>ecorae established, but will not grow well wiicn trans- 

 planted to sunny position. F. W. Baiv(;l,av. 



Culture of Tender Ferns. — To grow commercial 

 varieties of Ferns profitably, the first care should be to 

 secure the necessary number of properly built and 

 equipped houses, with a conveniently arranged work- 

 shop. The house which gives the most general satis- 

 faction runs north and south. Have an even-span rooi, 

 with a fall to roof of G inches to the foot. Its benches 

 should be arranged to be about 7 fet't wide, with a L'l- 

 inch path on either side. In an IS-foot house this will 

 permit of having a 7-foot center table, two .'Jia-foot si<le 

 benches and two 24-inch paths. Benches should not be 

 more than 3 feet above the walks, as this will bring 

 every part of the bench within easy reach, and will per- 

 mit of every plant being in constant sight and easily 

 cared for, which fact is essential in the protitable culti- 

 vation of trade Ferns. 



The width of house is innuaterial, but when houses 

 adjoin, a width of 27 feet has been found to be very 

 satisfactory, as this permits the constr^lction of three 7- 

 foot benches, two 24-inch paths, and two paths 2^2 feet 

 wide under each gutter. 



Thorough provision should be inade for ventilation. 

 For a 27-foot house, a continuous row of ventilators of 

 at least 3 feet in width should be provided, with some 

 reliable apparatus for raising same. Heating is the 

 next important consideration. Either steam or hot wa- 

 ter will give equally good results if properly installed. 

 The safest way for the average grower is to give the 

 heating contract to some reliable firm. Water taps 

 should be so arranged that a 25-foot hose attached to 

 same will easily reach any part of the house. A 2o-foot 

 hose can easily be carried about without injuring either 

 itself or benches and plants; and iron pipe is of only 

 half the cost of good hose. In most Fern houses drip is 

 a source of great annoyance, and should be prevented 

 by the use of drii)-bars, by having a drip-groove plowed 



into the lieaders immediately under the ventilating sash, 

 and also by having a groove in sides of gutter plates. 

 This very slight additional expense will very soon pay 

 for itself by saving a gre;it number of plants, especially 

 when growing very small Ferns in houses, such as have 

 been transplanted from spore-]"tots into boxes. Ventila- 

 tors sliouhl fit into a groove in ridge of house and be 

 hinged to the ridge. When ventilators are so arranged, 

 air, whi<-h is very <le,sirable on a good many warm, 

 rainy d:iys in the sumnjer, can be given without having 

 ])lants in the houses sulfering from excessive moisture. 

 Burning of the foliage will also be avoided, as the plants 

 will at no time be exposed to the direct rays of the sun. 

 Ventilators hinged on header and opening on ridge will 

 always give trouble. No matter what kind of covering 

 is put over the openinir. if it efficiently excludes the 

 burning sun's rays it will also prevent the ingress of 

 air. 



Propagating room should be provided for ; and in tlie 

 case of general trad(; Ferns raised from spores, it is a 

 very safe rule to •■alculate on having from (30 to 70 

 square inches of room in the propagating frame for 

 every 1,000 plants di^sired. The propagating frame 

 should he V r. h-i^t, wide, have sides 9 inches high, and. 

 to insure an even moisture, its bottom should be cov- 

 ered to the thickness of 1 inch with fine cinders with 

 the fine ashes removed, whiidi make very clean and effi- 

 cient drainage mtiterial. The frame should he covered 

 with light sash construct(.Ml with drip-bars, to carry olT 

 condensation. 



Shading of Fern houses shf)uld have close attention. 

 It is best etTected by the application of a suitable wash 

 to the outside of glass on roof. The following composi- 

 tion for a wash has given excellent results for a num- 

 ber of years: To 2 gallons of benzine or turpentine add 

 1 pint (or more, acc<irding to time the shading is de- 

 sired to remain on houses) of litiseed oil, 5 pounds of 

 pure white lead anil <-nough whitening to make proper 

 thickness {which can very easily be ascertained by a])- 

 plying some of it to a piece of glass while adding tin' 

 whitening); thoroughly mix and apply to outside of 

 glass with a soft l)rnsh of the same width as glass. 

 This shading, liy the addition of more or less linseed 

 oil, may be made to stay on houses up to one year. If 

 properly applied in spring, it will l>e jtist right during 

 the hot days of sunnner, and in the fall an<l winter, 

 when more light is grailnally required, the frosts gradu- 

 ally will have reduced the shading, thus admitting more 

 light at the necessary time. 



Much time, annoyance ami ex]iensc will be saved bv 

 a careful arrangement of the workshop, orpottingroom, 

 a thing which in most cases is totally neglected. ]r 

 should be so built that potting Ijen<lies are about 3 feet, 

 aliove the floor and 5 feet wid(.'. '^Fhey may be perma- 

 nently constructed of substantial material, in order th:it 

 a ntimber of pots of different sizes can be conveniently- 

 stored, and that potting materi:d can be thrown from 

 cart or Avagon directly onto potting benches. By an im- 

 proper arrangement of workshop great expense, loss 

 of time and material are iiifurred by having to handh^ 

 material repeatedly in small quantities. 



Propagation hij ]\feans of Spores. —To grow Ferns 

 from spores successfully, it is advisable to sterilize soil 

 on which spores are to be sown, which can best be done 

 lij subjecting it to a high temperature by means of 

 steam under a pressure of from 10 to 15 pounds; and 

 for this ptirpose a pi'operly e({uipped workshop should 

 be provided with a tight box about 3 by 3 by 8 feet or 

 larger if an uncommonly large number of Ferns is to 

 be grown. It should be fitted with a grating made of 2- 

 inch laths spaced one inch apart and pjlaced 2 inches 

 from bottom of the liox. This grating may be covered 

 with burlap, and if a :'4-inch steam pipe is fitted between 

 bottom of l)ox and gratin.g, and connected to highest 

 point of steam boiler (to insure getting perfectly dry 

 steam) we ;ire ready to sterilize the soil. After having 

 cooled olf. the soil is in practically the same condition 

 as before as far as moisture, friableness, etc., are con- 

 cerned, and this cannot he said of soil that has been 

 sterilized by burning and by other methods. This 

 steaming process will eJfectually destroy all forms of 

 life in the soil atid leave it for the use of spores alone. 

 In most localities, the water itsed for moistening spores 



