420 



THE BOOK OF CHOICE FERNS. 



rough, are pinnately branched ; the branches are abundantly produced, spear- 

 shaped, and 4in. to 5in. long, and their branchlets are simple, the lower ones 

 being about lin. long. The leaves are of a dark, shining green on their 

 upper surface, and moderately firm in texture ; those of the lower plane are 

 broadly sickle -shaped, rounded at the base, and attached to the stem on the 

 lower side, while those of the upper plane are broadly spear-shaped, slightly 

 incurved, and sharp -pointed. The fruiting spikes are square and Jin. to lin. 

 long.— Baker, Handbook of the Fern-Allies, p. 90. Nicholson, Dictionary of 

 Gardening, iv., p. 602. 



S. grandis— gran'-dis (great), Moore. 



This stove species, also known in gardens as S. platyphylla, is a native 

 of Borneo. Its erect stems, ljft. to 2ft. long, simple in their lower and 

 divided in their upper half, are produced from a creeping, rooting base or 

 stolon as thick as an ordinary lead-pencil. The nature of their branching is 

 midway between fan- shaped and pinnate, and they are of a bold yet graceful 

 habit (see Coloured Plate). -The leaves of the lower plane are crowded, spear- 

 shaped, very sharp-pointed, bright green, of a moderately firm texture, and 

 slightly ciliated on both margins ; those of the upper plane, one-third as long, 

 are blunt, broadly egg-shaped, and much overlap. The entire leafy portion 

 is of a clear grass-green above and paler beneath. The tail-like fruiting spikes, 

 lin. to ljin. long, which are abundantly produced, add greatly to the appear- 

 ance of this magnificent plant. — Baker, Handbook of the Fern-Allies, p. 98. 

 Nicholson, Dictionary of Gardening, hi., p. 411. 



S. haematodes — hasm-aW-des (bloody), Spring. 



One of the handsomest of all the known Selaginellas ; it is a stove species, 

 native of the Andes of Venezuela, Peru, and Ecuador. Its robust, erect stems, 

 lft. to 2ft. long, of a bright crimson colour, are unbranched in their lower half, 

 while in their upper half the leaves, much spaced and divided, form a massive 

 yet feathery mass of foliage. The leaves of the lower plane, egg-shaped and 

 sharp -pointed, are ascending, bright green, and of a moderately firm texture ; 

 those of the upper plane are small and oblique-oblong. The fruiting spikes, 

 lin. to ljin. long, are square and abundantly produced. S. filicina is identical 

 with this species. — Baker, Handbook of the Fern-Allies, p. 103. Nicholson, 

 Dictionary of Gardening, iii., p. 411. 



