FERNS OP GREAT BRITAIN. 55 



The mode of veining is similar to that of L. spinulosa, 

 and the fronds produce a large number of clusters of 

 fructification, which, at first sight, seem to be irregularly 

 scattered. They do not lie in such precise rows as on 

 some other species, but they form two lines crosswise 

 the pinnae on the larger lobes, and lengthwise on the 

 less divided portions. The indusia are more or less 

 fringed at the edges with stalked glands. 



The short triangular form of this fern is not uncom- 

 mon on exposed places ; it is generally of a darker green, 

 often tinged with brown, and the fronds are convex, or 

 even drooping. A variety found on the hills of West- 

 moreland, Yorkshire, and Lancashire, differs so much 

 from the ordinary condition, that some writers describe 

 it as a distinct species, under the name of L. collina. 

 The frond is egg-shaped, very long, and tapering ; the 

 pinnules egg-shaped, blunt, and with a broad attachment 

 at the base. They are serrated and spiny, though less 

 so than in the ordinary condition of the plant. In 

 another form, the surface of the frond is covered with 

 glands, and the scales of the stipes are broader. 



This Broad Prickly-toothed Fern is a very common 



plant throughout the kingdom. Its rhizome is often 



conspicuous above the ground, as it does not creep nor 



send out branches, but becomes a strong firm base, 



rising erect like a stem, sometimes half a foot or a foot 



above the surface of the ground. This fern is found 



mostly on wooded or bushy spots, where it is sheltered 



from the strong sunlight : — 



" The feathery Pern ! the feathery Eerh ! 

 It groweth wild, and it groweth free, 



