FERNS— HARDY. 



605 



A. pedatum. — Creeping, the fronds lateral, 1 to 2 feet 

 in length, with linear branches ; pinnules developed on 

 one side of the midrib only, oblong, obtuse, bright-green. 

 North America. 



Allosorus crispus (Parsley Fern). — Fronds bi-tri- 

 pinnate, 6 to 10 inches long, bright-green, fertile ones 

 contracted. Prefers shade and good drainage. Europe 

 (Britain). 



Aspidium [Polystichum]. — The Shield Ferns comprise 

 about fifty species. They are distinguished by their 

 globose dorsal sori and superior, round, peltate involucre. 

 The two British species belong to the section Polystichum, 

 having free veins. The fronds are mostly rigid in texture 

 and spinulose. 



A.acrostichoides. — Fronds pinnate, 12 to 20 inches long; 

 pinnae lobed, bristly, the upper pinnae fertile and con- 

 tracted. North America. 



A. aculeatum.- — Fronds evergreen, bipinnate, lanceolate, 



2 to 3 feet high, 6 to 8 inches wide ; the pinnules sessile, 

 wedge-shaped, the basal one auriculate. The stipes are 

 densely clothed with large chaffy scales. Cosmopolitan 

 (Britain). 



Var. angulare. — Fronds tripinnate, pinnules ovate, stipes 

 clothed with chaffy scales. There are an immense number 

 of varieties, some of which are: — cristatum, fronds 2 to 



3 feet long, apex densely crested; diversilobum plumosum- 

 has fronds of exceptional elegance and richness; gracilc, 

 fronds 1 to 2 feet long, pinnules small, spiny-toothed; 

 grandieeps, pinnae crested, the frond surmounted with a 

 dense corymb; parvissimum, fronds a foot long, pinnules 

 blunt, coriaceous ; Pateyi is densely imbricated ; poly- 

 dactylum, fronds narrow lanceolate, a foot high, ramose, 

 very handsome; proliferum, fronds lanceolate, 12 to 

 18 inches high, producing little bulbils along the rachis; 

 proliferum Wollastoni is very handsome; rotundatum has 

 roundish pinnules, not spiny. Other beautiful varieties 

 are grandidens, imbricatum, plumosum, tripinnatum, &c. 



A. caryotideum. — Fronds evergreen, 2 to 3 feet long, 

 pinnate; pinnae lanceolate, auriculate, 4 to 6 inches long, 

 pale-green. Nepal. 



A. falcatum. — Fronds pinnate, evergreen,- 2 to 3 feet 

 long; pinnae somewhat falcate, 4 to 6 inches long, deep 

 shining-green. Tropics Old World. 



A. falcinellum. — Caudex thick, erect; fronds pinnate, 

 evergreen, 12 to 18 inches long; pinnae serrate, bright- 

 green; stipes densely scaly. Requires slight protection. 

 Madeira. 



A. Lonchitis. — Fronds evergreen, pinnate, rigid, 9 to 18 

 inches long; pinnae entire, auriculate, spiny, intense green. 

 North temperate zone (Britain). 



Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum. — One of the most beau- 

 tiful of hardy Ferns. Fronds evergreen, triangular, bi- 

 tri-pinnate ; the pinnules ovate, dentate, dark shining-green ; 

 stipes black. It flourishes most luxuriantly in sandstone. 

 Var. grandieeps has the fronds tasselled. Europe (Britain). 



A. alternans. — Fronds evergreen, 6 to 8 inches high, 

 pinnatifid or sinuose. Resembles A. Ceterach, but has no 

 chaffy scales. Himalaya. 



A. angustifolium. — Fronds deciduous, pinnate, 10 to 20 

 inches long, sterile much broader than fertile ; pinnae 

 linear-lanceolate, light-green. North America. 



A. Ceterach. — Fronds leathery, pinnatifid, 3 to 6 inches 

 long, densely clothed beneath with chaffy scales. Prefers 

 limestone. Europe, &c. (Britain). 



A. ebeneum. — Fronds evergreen, pinnate, 6 to 12 inches 

 long ; pinnae auriculate, crenate, deep-green, the rachis 

 black. North America. 



A. Filix - fcemina (Lady Fern). — Fronds deciduous, 



herbaceous, bi- or tri-pinnate, lanceolate, 1 to 4 feet high; 

 pinnules sessile, ovate, dentate. The varieties are very 

 numerous: — corymbiferum has crested fronds 12 to 20 

 inches high ; erispum is dwarf, with tasselled, variable 

 fronds; Frizelliw has pendulous fronds 18 inches long 

 and 1 inch wide, the small dentate pinnae overlapping 

 each other ; Appjlebyanum is similar, with a much- 

 branched apex ; gremdiceps has lanceolate fronds, the 

 apex forming a dense much-branched crest; plumosum 

 has broadly -lanceolate fronds 3 to 4 feet long, thin in 

 texture, finely divided ; Victorice has crested fronds and 

 pinnae, the latter forking at the base, and crossing so as 

 to form a letter X ; very distinct and handsome. Other 

 good forms are: — apiculatum, acrocladon, apuceforme, coro- 

 natum, Elworthii, gracile, mxdticeps, midtijidum, poly dados, 

 polydactylon, Stansfieldi, &c. 



A. fontanum. — Fronds 4 to 6 inches high, evergreen, 

 bipinnate, broadest in the middle; pinnules toothed, deep- 

 green. Europe. 



A. germanicum. — Fronds 4 to 6 inches high, pinnate; 

 pinnae alternate, deeply divided at the apex, light -green. 

 Should be planted amongst pieces of sandstone and de- 

 cayed vegetable mould. Europe (Britain). 



A. lanceolatum. — Fronds evergreen, bipinnate, 6 to 18 

 inches high; pinnules deeply toothed. Var. microdon has 

 pinnate fronds and triangular pinnae. Europe (Britain). 



A. lanceum.— Fronds simple, lanceolate, 6 to 15 inches 

 long, undulate, bright-green ; the regular double lines of 

 brown sori are well-marked peculiarities. Japan and China. 



A. macrocarpum pictum. — Fronds 6 to 18 inches long, 

 stipes and rachis red ; pinnae deep-green, those next the 

 costa red and white. Japan. 



A. marinum. — Fronds evergreen, 6 to 12 inches high, 

 narrow, pinnate; stipes purplish-black. Requires care and 

 special attention. The most distinct varieties are ramo- 

 sum, trapeziforme, bipinnatum, and crenatum. Europe 

 (Britain). 



A. thelypteroides. — Fronds deciduous, pinnate, lanceo- 

 late, 1 to 2 feet long, light-green; pinnules deeply divided. 

 North America. 



A. Trichomanes. — Fronds evergreen, pinnate, 3 to 12 

 inches long, linear; pinnae small, oblong-ovate, deep-green; 

 stipes blackish -purple. The most distinct variations are 

 incisum, Moulei, ramosum, multifidum, and cristatum. 



Cyrtomium. See Aspidium. 



Cystopteris.— Small elegant Ferns, with soft deciduous 

 bipinnate or tripinnate fronds. They prefer a shady, 

 moist situation. 



C. bulbifera. — Fronds bipinnate, 1 foot long, erect, dull- 

 purple, changing tO'pale-green, and bearing on the under 

 side of the rachis quantities of bulbils, which fall off when 

 mature and quickly become plants. North America. 



C. fragilis. — Fronds bi- or tri-pinnate, 6 to 12 inches 

 long, dark-green. The following are fairly-marked varie- 

 ties: — angustata, narrower in all its parts; dentata. pin- 

 nules bluntly -toothed ; Dickieana, pinnae dense, bluntly- 

 toothed, and dark-green. Cosmopolitan (Britain). 



C montana. — Handsome, fronds 6 to 12 inches long, 

 bright-green; rhizome slender, creeping. Europe (Britain). 



Dicksonia punctilobula. — Fronds deciduous, subtripin- 

 ! nate, broadly-triangular, the segments obtuse, dentate, 

 j light-green, slightly pubescent. North America, 



Diplazium. See Asplenium. 



GYMNOGRAMME/a/)o?»'ctf . — Fronds pinnate or bipinnate. 

 1 to 2 feet high ; pinnae lanceolate, 6 to 10 inches long, 

 dark-green above, paler below. A distinct and handsome 

 Fern. Japan, &c. 



Hymenophyllum. — H. tunbridgensc and its variety 



