158 



THE BOOK OF CHOICE FERNS. 



beautiful, some of the hardy kinds are so cheap as to be within the purchasing 

 power of all, while others are so scarce and costly as to be worthy companions 

 of all that is rich and rare among the gems of the stove and the conservatory. 

 No garden should be without its hardy Fernery, for the popularity of Ferns 

 does not rest only upon their beauty or their price. They possess an 

 additional value, inasmuch as there is scarcely any place in which representa- 

 tives of some of the genera refuse to grow. Most of them thrive best in 

 the shade ; others prefer the brightest light ; a third group will live principally 

 on dry walls and chalky rocks ; a fourth succeeds nowhere except in abundant 

 moisture ; and a fifth revels in the freest air of mountain-tops. Speaking 

 generally, it may be said that, by the formation of a natural Fernery, a shaded 

 place, which would be almost useless for the cultivation of other plants, can 

 be easily and successfully turned into a verdant and highly-interesting spot. 

 The introduction, within the last few years, of North American and Japanese 

 kinds, which have proved perfectly hardy under our climate, has materially 

 added to the great diversity of size and habit as represented by the British 

 species and their numerous varieties. 



In the formation of the outdoor Fernery it is essential to study the 

 requirements of the plants rather than to show the building of the rockwork, 

 and to provide against the disastrous etFects of high winds, which are 

 injurious to all of them. The tenclerest kinds must be sheltered by over- 

 hanging trees, and by groups of the more robust sorts, which, when planted 

 in masses and judiciously disposed, considerably help in procuring the comfort 

 necessary to the well-being of the smaller and more delicate species. In 

 most gardens many suitable positions exist which might be rendered very 

 attractive by the introduction of hardy Ferns. As these plants require, during 

 the summer, a great abundance of water at the roots, one of the essential 

 points in connection with the formation of a hardy Fernery is the selection 

 of a place where a good depth of soil, with thoroughly good drainage, 

 can be secured. There, with a pile of rockwork, or, better still, a com- 

 bination of old tree-stumps, furnished with their large roots, and of blocks 

 of stone — the rougher the better — a Fernery may, with very little trouble and 

 expense, be prepared on either a small or a large scale ; and, according to 

 their size and habit, places may be selected to suit all our native Ferns, 

 many of which are as beautiful and as truly decorative as kinds requiring 



