52 



THE BOOK OF CHOICE FERNS. 



belonging to the genus, and its particularly finely-dissected appearance is 

 produced by the numerous lobes of the pinna? being deeply cut into minute 

 segments. Other plain-fronded species, such as the delicate but exceedingly 

 beautiful G. Pearcei and its superb variety robusta, G. scMzophylla and its 

 plumose form gloriosa, &c, have their foliage powdered with white only while 

 young : as the plants get older, the powder becomes gradually scarcer, until 

 in the adult stage it is limited to the crown itself. 



As we have before remarked, cristation is a form of variation to which 

 Gymnogrammes are very subject, for many of them have a tendency to 

 produce forked and multifid fronds ; but, contrary to most other crested 

 Ferns, the Grymnogrammes thus affected have a more erect habit than the 

 species with plain fronds. The differences in size are also less marked among 

 the plants forming the crested section than in any other ; the dwarfest form, 

 however, is the thickly-crested G. calomelanos dirysophylla P&rsonsi, whose 

 short and sturdy fronds are entirely covered with a bright yellow powder. 

 Then there are the handsome G. pulchella Wette?ihalliana, whose fronds, which 

 average about 20in. in length, are sometimes pure white, and in other 

 instances pale lemon or sulphur -coloured ; and the rare G. calomelanos chryso- 

 phylla grandiceps, with fronds averaging about the same size as those of 

 G. pulchella Wettenhalliana, but in colour a very fine dark yellow, and with 

 huge and massive crests, borne on erect stalks, which show themselves 

 admirably amongst other kinds. These crested forms also come in for their 

 share of usefulness as decorative Ferns, for in their case, owing to the 

 particularly erect character of the plants, the powder is much more conspicuous 

 than in species and varieties with plain fronds. 



Besides the natural attractions which they possess, and their value as 

 decorative plants, the cultivation of Gymnogrammes is rendered more general 

 by the simplicity of their requirements. Although one sometimes hears of 

 complaints bearing on their fastidiousness, we feel confident that this is only 

 imaginary. Nearly all of them are most sturdy growers, provided they are 

 kept in a place where they can enjoy a great abundance of light and a liberal 

 supply of water at the roots during their growing season, especially if they 

 are potted in a light compost of a permeable nature, which is the most 

 suitable to them. With the exception of G. Muelleri and G. triangularis, all 

 the species and varieties of Gymnogramme belonging to the Golden and Silver 



