POLYPODIUM. 



191 



to 9m. long, 4in. to 6in. broad, and sub-deltoid (somewhat in shape of the 

 Greek delta, A) ; they are borne on slender, naked stalks 6in. to 9in. long, 

 and are cut down nearly to the rachis into close, blunt, entire or slightly- 

 toothed lobes. The lowest or basal pair of lobes of each frond are suddenly 

 deflexed (thrown back). The texture is soft and papery, and the under-side 

 of all the leafy portion is slightly hairy. The sori (spore masses) are disposed 

 nearer the edge than the midrib. — Hooker, Species Filicum, iv., p. 245 ; British 

 Ferns, t. 3. Nicholson, Dictionary of Gardening, hi., p. 192. Lowe, Our 

 Native Ferns, 1, t. 1. Eaton, Ferns of North America, i., t. 29. Correvon, 

 Les Fougeres rustiques, p. 147. 



Fig. 54. Portion of Frond of Poiypoclium Phegopteris multifidum 



(nat. size). 



Like the Oak Fern (P. Dryopteris), the species under notice may with 

 advantage be planted out in the open Fernery or- grown in pots, and the 

 compost recommended for that pretty species is equally suitable for the 

 Beech Fern, but a greater depth— about 6in.— must be allowed, as it roots 

 much deeper into the ground. Care must also be taken not to bury the 

 rhizomes deeply, but to keep them barely below the surface of the ground. 



