CHAPTER XIII. 



DRYING FERN FRONDS. 



T is not only in their living state, and when in fresh condition, 

 that Ferns are decorative and interesting : they are also a 

 great and constant source of enjoyment when carefully pre- 

 served in a dry state. The fronds being flat, the majority, 

 if not the whole of them, may, with a little attention, be dried 

 in such a way as to be very nearly as attractive in that state as when in 

 full growth. It is quite as pleasant to refer to fronds thus preserved as it is 

 to consult drawings or paintings — more or less exact and trustworthy — of flowers 

 gone by which, on account of their size, shape, or nature, it is found 

 impossible to preserve in the same way. In the case of dried fronds there 

 can be neither exaggeration nor deception ; the size and shape are sure to 

 be exact, and, if carefully prepared, the colours of the species may equally 

 be depended upon. 



It must be borne in mind that, although they may be placed under 

 exactly similar conditions, some Fern fronds will retain their colour much 

 better than others. Hymenophyllums, Todeas, and Trichomanes, for instance, 

 seldom become discoloured through the process of drying ; in fact, it may" be 

 broadly stated, that all thin-textured fronds keep their colour far better than 

 those which possess more substance, such as some of the Lomarias, Acro- 

 stichums, Aspleniums, Davallias, Polypodiums, &c. The. reason for such a 

 result is obvious. In the first place, scarcely any moisture is exhaled during 

 the drying of these thin fronds, compared with the amount of it given off by 

 fronds of a more fleshy nature. The latter, on account of their thickness, are 



