FERNS— HARDY. 



603 



like leaves of a steel-blue colour. It forms a tangle of 

 stems and branches in a few months under liberal culti- 

 vation. India. 



LYCOPODIUMS. 



A large genus represented in our native flora 

 by the Club-Mosses (L. clavatmn, L. alpinum, &c). 

 They are all of striking appearance and excep- 

 tionally interesting, but unfortunately they are 

 difficult to cultivate. Some of the tropical 

 species are, however, represented in good col- 

 lections — at Kew, for instance, where they are 



Fig. 732.— Lycopodium squarrosum. 



grown in teak baskets of sphagnum, ana sus- 

 pended near the roof-glass in a tropical moist 

 house. Here they grow with vigour, pushing 

 up annually their succulent stems clothed with 

 Pine -like leaves and ultimately with terminal 

 tassels of spore-bearing branchlets. The best of 

 them are L. Phlegmasia, L. squarrosum (fig. 732), 

 and L. taxifolium. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 



FERNS— HARDY. 



General Treatment — Hardy Ferns under Glass — 

 Select List of Hardy Ferns. 



Hardy Ferns are rich in beauty and variety. 

 Many of them are deciduous, the fronds perish- 

 ing during the winter, to be succeeded, how- 

 ever, by a burst in spring of new fronds, which 

 retain their freshness until winter comes again. 



They are useful either for growing in pots for 

 the conservatory or other plant-houses, or for 

 furnishing rockeries in the open garden (see 

 fig. 733). The term rockery is a very elastic 

 one; it may mean an elaborate arrangement of 

 stones, or artificial rock, or it may be applied 

 to a conglomeration of brick-burrs, clinkers, 

 stumps of trees, roots, &c, arranged for the 

 accommodation of certain plants. Blocks of 

 natural, irregularly-shaped rough stone are of 

 course the best, but they are not always ob- 

 tainable, and we must perforce use whatever 

 material can be got; and after all, the material 

 itself is of less consequence than the manner of 

 its arrangement. A suitable rockery may be 

 formed with very little expense in the following 

 manner : — 



Peg out on the flat surface a winding walk 

 made to conform to the surroundings of the 

 place where the fernery is to be formed. Then 

 begin at one end and remove the soil from the 

 walk, gradually sinking it lower, and sloping 

 the sides as the work goes on. The soil so 

 excavated should be placed on the banks on 

 either hand, mixing with it stone, brick rubble, 

 broken pots, or any other material suitable for 

 drainage. The Ferns should be planted in 

 good turfy loam. The depth of the lowest 

 part of the walk below the ground-level should 

 be in proportion to the size and nature of 

 the ground. When the ground work is done, 

 the mounds or banks should be finished off 

 as rockeries with whatever material of rustic 

 appearance can be obtained. 



It is important that a suitable position 

 should be assigned to each plant. For ex- 

 ample, Osmunda and Struthiopteris should 

 have the wettest places; the mural species, 

 such as Asplenium Buta-muraria, A. Tricho- 

 manes, A. viride, and A. qfficinarum, should 

 have light positions; robust growers should 

 be placed where they will get room, both at 

 root and top. A shaded corner or a small 

 cave might be made to accommodate Tricho- 

 manes, Hymenophyllums, and Todeas. Steps 

 can be made in suitable places, and rendered 

 permanent by placing rustic pieces of wood 

 along them; a small rustic bridge, and even 

 a shallow pool, might be added if space and 

 means allow. Shell-gravel or shingle is the 

 best for surfacing the walks; cement or asphalt 

 should be avoided. 



Hardy Ferns when grown in pots are not 

 easily kept free from thrips, especially when 

 used for indoor decoration. If possible, they 

 should be wintered in a cold frame, or the 



