352 



THE CENTURY BOOK OF GARDENING 



A. f. f. revolvens has its pinna? in ringlets and the end of each frond to match ; A. f. f. 

 stipatum Grantee, congestum, Edwardsi, Findlayanum, and Whitwelli have densely compacted 

 fronds, and consequently form good dwarf plants for front rows ; A. f. f. orbiculare, gemmatum, 

 and acrocladon represent a class of Ferns so heavily tasselled that they resemble masses of 

 Moss arranged more or less frond fashion. 



Among the Male Ferns, L. p. m. cristata, the King of the tribe, is a splendid fellow, 

 finely crested and robust, forming a grand Tree Fern if kept to one crown. L. p. m. poly- 

 dactyla Wills and L. f. mas polydactyla Dadds are good companions, while L. p. m. cristata 

 plumosissima is a delicate silken edition de luxe of the species. L. p. m. ramosissima tries 

 to imitate the Mossy section of Lady Ferns in a very masculine way, and L. p. m. ramulo- 

 sissima does the same thing on a dwarf scale, and is in good company with the little gems 



A BRITISH FERNERY. — MR. C. T. DRUERY'S COLLECTION. 



L. p. m. crispata, crispata cristata, and crispa gracile, all a few inches in height only. A 

 narrow-bodied son of the King aforesaid, L. p. m. cristata angustata, is a good foil, but not 

 so robust. In some way it has allied itself with one of the dwarfs and given us L. p. m. 

 angustata congesta, a curious little beauty. L. p. m. revolvens tries to cultivate ringlets like 

 the Lady Fern, but only succeeds, very prettily, in rolling its fronds into tubes. There are 

 three sub-divisions of the Male Fern tribe, and in each there are varieties on similar lines ; 

 the above are the choicest types. The Broad Buckler Fern (L. dilatata) likes a peaty 

 moist station ; it has given us fine tasselled forms, L. d. cristata Oscroft and grandiceps 

 Barnes, and there are in cultivation two splendid varieties of the same species from the Azores, 

 L. d. folioso cristata and polydactyla, which are quite evergreen and hardy under glass. 

 L. d. Howardae is a curiosity, all pinnules short and duplicated evenly. The Shield Ferns 

 (Polystichum aculeatum and angulare) swamp us with types worthy of recommendation, and 



