NEPHRODIUM. 



493 



size is from l|ft. to IJft. high, but it is oftener seen as a compact little 

 specimen not exceeding 1ft. in height. Its delicate and finely-divided fronds, 

 produced in great abundance from an underground-creeping rhizome, are 

 of a somewhat triangular form, and are borne on short, Hght-haired stalks, 

 contrasting agreeably with the glossy nature of the leafy portion of the 

 fronds. — Fo(?yL'er, Synopsis Filicum, p. 281. Nicholson, Dictionary of 

 Gardening, ii., p. 440. 



N. d. glahellum is well adapted for pot culture, or for planting in nooks 

 in the rockery where there is but Httle soil or space at disposal. It is also 

 a capital plant for Fern-cases, as generally seen in dwelling-rooms, where it 

 grows luxuriantly, its tender, soft green colour forming a striking contrast 

 with plants of a darker hue. The beauty of this variety is readily destroyed 

 by watering or syringing overhead, which causes the fronds, young or old, 

 to assume a brownish, sickly appearance. 



N. (Sagenia) decurrens— Sag-e'-m-a ; de-cur'-rens (decurrent), Baher. 



This must not be confounded with the plant usually found in collections 

 as Lastrea decurrens of J. Smith {N. decursivo-pinnatum of Baker), which 

 is totally different. The present one is a stove species, of large dimensions, 

 native of Northern India, Ceylon, the Philippines, the Malaccas, Formosa, 

 Aneiteum, Fiji, and Samoa. Its singular fronds, 2ft. to 4ft. long, Iffc. or 

 more broad, are cut down to a winged stalk into four to eight pairs of 

 sinuated (wavy-edged), narrow-oblong leaflets 6in. to 12in. long and lin. 

 to 2in. broad, the two lowest sometimes forked. They are of a somewhat 

 leathery texture, and the large and prominent sori (spore masses) are disposed 

 in two regular rows between the principal veins. — HooJcer, Species Filicum, 

 iv., p. 47. Nicholson, Dictionary of Gardening, ii., p. 440. Beddome, Ferns 

 of Southern India, t. 245. 



N. (Lastrea) decursivo-pinnatum— de-cur-si'-vo-pin-na'-tum (appearing 

 as if pinnate, while the leaflets are connected with the stalk by 

 a narrow wing), Baher. 

 This is the plant which in gardens is usually known as Lastrea 

 decurrens of J. Smith. It is a greenhouse or half-hardy species, of small 

 dimensions and of deciduous nature, native of Japan, China, and Formosa, 



