286 



produce the best results. Airyhow water is a sine qua non, 

 whether the application be from the top or bottom. As, 

 however, I am rather more concerned just now with under- 

 glass conditions and the abolition of the watering-pot! 

 I shall confine my remarks to that phase of Fern Culture. 

 I can, therefore, quite agree that ' ' constant artificial water- 

 ing is rather a nuisance/' but how tc avoid this in an ordinary 

 construction passes my comprehension. 



All the same the desire exists, for the older one gets the 

 less inclined one is to perform any work which savours of 

 supererogation. On the other hand how is it possible to 

 have a dry top-soil and a wet bottom-soil ? The two 

 conditions seem to be antagonistic. If the bottom is boggy 

 will not the moisture therefrom rise to the surface by the 

 process known as " capillary attraction ? " If this be so 

 then these two extreme conditions cannot remain permanent. 

 Pulverisation of the surface soil, which is insisted on, will 

 increase this action, and, of course, render humidity more 

 uniform. The absorbent power of some soils is much 

 greater than others, and thus, the more finely comminuted 

 the soil is, the greater the degree of capillarity. 



Again, drainage is always considered a most important 

 item even in the culture of Ferns : a saturated soil being 

 detrimental to the health of most cultivated plants. 



That the cc common sense " — or less troublesome — way 

 of dealing with Ferns is to plant them out, goes without 

 saying. This in itself is a labour-saving arrangement, 

 besides giving additional vigour to the plants and otherwise 

 operating to the advantage of the cultivator. But not- 

 withstanding all this there is, I think, a special charm about 

 pot-plants which ground-culture cannot claim. In my 

 own little Fernery — which is all too small — I cannot find 

 sufficient room for planting out, even with my limited 



