110 



THE BOOK OF CHOICE FERNS. 



P. (Goniophlebium) Beddomei — Gt>ni-oph-leb'-i •um : Bed-do'-me-i 

 (Beddome's), Baker. 

 This , is the Goniophlebium. molle of Bedel ome, a stove species, native of 

 Burmah, where it was discovered by the Rev. C. S. Parish. It is distinct 

 through its wide-creeping rhizome, densely clothed with reddish-brown scales, 

 from which the fronds, l£ft. long and 7in. to Sin. broad, are produced. The 

 leaflets, 3in. to 4in. long and Jin, broad, are deeply notched, sometimes eared 

 at the base on the upper side, stalkless, of a soft, papery texture, and with 

 spore masses disposed in a single row. — Hooker, Synopsis Filicum, p. 344. 

 Beddome, Ferns of British India, t. 206. 



P. Bernouillii — Ber-nouiF-li-i (Bernouilli's), Baker. 



A stove species, of small dimensions and little decorative value, much 

 resembling the better-known P. plebeium. It is a native of Guatemala. — 

 Hooker, Synopsis Filicum, p. 510. 



P. biauriculatum — bi-aur-ic-ul-a'-tum (twice-eared), Hooker. 



A greenhouse species, native of Peru, with fronds 1ft. to l.|ft. long, 

 4in. to Gin. broad, and borne on stout, upright stalks 4in. to 6in. long and 

 hairy upwards. The horizontal leaflets, 2in. long and Jin. broad, are entire, 

 distinctly eared at the base on both sides, of a somewhat leathery texture, and 

 densely hairy on both sides. The sori (spore masses) fill up nearly the whole 

 space between the edge and the midrib. — Hooker, Icones Plantar um, t. 121. 



P. biforme — bif-or'-me (of two forms), Baker. 



This stove species, native of Madagascar, Bourbon, and Mayotta, has 

 oblong-spear-shaped fronds 2ft. long, borne on stalks IJft. long. They are 

 simply pinnate, being cut to the midrib into many strap-shaped, bluntly-lobed 

 leaflets : the barren ones are Gin. to 7in. long and lin. broad, while the 

 fertile ones are smaller, and the lowest are stalked ; all are light green on 

 both surfaces, and have the spore masses disposed near the main veins. — 

 Hooker, Synopsis Filicum, p. 505. 



P. (Phymatodes) bifrons — Phy-mat-o'-des ; bif-rons (two-fronded), Hooker. 



In this stove species, native of Ecuador, the fronds, produced from a 

 rather slender, branched, twisted rhizome of a woody nature, are of two quite 



