FERTILISATION AND PROPAGATION. 



119 



that tlieir germination has not been materially affected by the delay to which 

 they have been subjected. As a proof of this assertion, we can offer not only 

 our own successful case of uniform spring sowing, but also the many instances 

 in which nurserymen and botanical gardeners have had to introduce new Ferns 

 from spores received through the medium of their collectors : in such cases, 

 after travelling for several months, the spores cannot possibly be sown soon 

 after having been gathered. An idea of the vitality with which Fern spores 

 are endowed may be gathered from the fact that from spores of Pteris 

 quadriaurita tricolor seven years old, sown in 1876, a splendid crop of young 

 plants were raised, and in the course of one season perfectly healthy and 

 robust specimens were produced. 



Many ingenious ways of sowing Fern spores have been advocated by 

 persons more or less practical, some even going so far as to recommend their 

 being sown on prepared flannel ; but, provided the materials used be of pure 

 quality, we have learnt from experience that the simpler the operation the 

 better, and that the use of either a piece of turfy loam, or in some cases a 

 piece of fibrous peat, or, again, a mixture of both, perfectly free from fungus 

 (brought about by decomposition of organic matter or of insects) is all that is 

 required. To make sure that the materials used are perfectly free from all 

 impurity and from living organisms, it is well to submit them to the process 

 of baking in order to kill any germs of moss or other unwelcome growth 

 which they may contain, and which may smother the young Ferns as they 

 come up, and also to kill any slugs, worms, or insect larva? which may 

 be present. Another excellent way of getting rid of vegetable or animal 

 life in the material used for sowing, especially when it is a mixture of the 

 nature of ordinary Fern compost, consists in gently pouring the contents 

 of a kettleful of boiling water over it, and allowing it to cool. In either case, 

 when the soil thus treated has been allowed to cool and drain, it is ready 

 for use, as eggs or larva) of insects, spores of Fungi, &c, are all destroyed, 

 and there is nothing left in the soil to interfere with the growth of the 

 young Ferns. 



When the sowing takes place on turfs of either peat or loam, these should 

 be put in boiling water, and allowed to remain in it long enough to become 

 perfectly saturated, after which they should be placed in an upright position, 

 to allow all superfluous moisture to drain off. They are then ready to receive 



