48 



THE BOOK OF CHOICE FERNS. 



very elegant fronds, borne on strong, upright stalks 6in. to 9in. long, of a pale 

 brown colour, and clothed at the base with reddish-brown scales, are broadly 

 egg-shaped, 6in. to 12in. long, and tri- or quadripinnate (three or four times 

 divided to the midrib). The leaflets, of a rigid nature, are broadly spear- 

 shaped ; the lowest are furnished with several narrow- oblong leafits, the lower 

 segments of which are sometimes slightly branched ; the ultimate divisions, 

 seldom more than |in. long, are narrow-oblong, blunt, with enrolled edges ; 

 all are of a leathery texture, with both surfaces naked. The wrinkled 

 involucre is scarcely changed from the substance of the frond, sometimes 

 nearly meeting edge to edge. — Hooker, Sjiecies Filicum, ii. } p. 149. Nicholson, 

 Dictionary of Gardening, hi., p. 66. 



P. (HolcOChlsena) angulosa — Holc-och-la/-na ; ang-ul-o'-sa (angular), 

 Baker. 



A strong-growing, stove species, native of Mauritius, Bourbon, and 

 Madagascar. The stalks of the fronds are strong, upright, 6in. to 12in. long, 

 of a dark chestnut-brown colour and polished nature. The fronds are sub- 

 deltoid (somewhat in shape of the Greek delta, A), being 6in. to Uin. each 

 way and twice or three times divided to the midrib. The upper leaflets are 

 simple and cordate (undivided and heart-shaped), stalked, lin. to l|in. long, 

 and Jin. to fin. broad ; their margin is not toothed but is sometimes 

 undulated. The lower leaflets are more spear-shaped than the upper ones, 

 and are furnished with several similar leafits Jin. or more apart, sometimes 

 divided again below. All are of a leathery texture, with both surfaces naked, 

 but their midrib is hairy and their veins are copiously netted. The sori 

 (spore masses) are disposed in a continuous line to the summit of the 

 segments, ultimately concealing the reflexed involucre. — Hooker, SjJecies Filicum, 

 ii., p. 214, t. 126a. 



P. (Allosorus) angustifolla— All-os-o'-rus ; an-gus-tif-ol'-i-a (narrow- 

 leaved), Baker. 



This strong-growing, stove species, native of Mexico and Venezuela, is 

 described and figured in Hooker's " Species Filicum " under the name of 

 P. decomposita, which name has been abandoned. Its much-divided fronds, 

 6in. to 12in. long and Sin. to Gin. broad, are borne on strong, erect, naked 



