362 THE CENTURY BOOK OF GARDENING. 



Nothoehlrena. — Very pretty delicate Ferns, some of 

 which hear a certain resemblance to the Adiantums, but 

 are covered more or less with meal as in the Gymno- 

 grammas. They are sometimes called Gold and Silver 

 Maidenhairs. A mixture of peat and small pieces of 

 sandstone suits them best, and they need an open 

 position where they will not be watered overhead. A 

 selection would include : N. chrysophylla, whose much 

 divided fronds, less than ift. in length, are covered with 

 a golden powder ; N. Eckloniana, with particularly 

 dense leathery fronds clothed on the undersides with 

 silky scales ; N. Marantse, a cool house plant, the under- 

 sides of the fronds being covered with reddish-brown 

 scales ; N. Newberryi is a pretty little plant thickly 

 covered with hairs varying in colour from white to pale 

 brown ; N. nivea, a good deal in the way of N. chryso- 

 phylla, but the undersides of the fronds are silvery white ; 

 N. sinuata, with simple pinnate fronds 2ft. long and of a 

 semi-pendulous nature, best grown in a suspended 

 basket ; N. trichomanoides, somewhat in the way of the 

 last, but with leaflets lobed and white underneath. 



Onyehium. — Only two species of Onychium are in culti- 

 vation, and both are much admired because of their 

 elegantly cut fronds. The first, O. auratum, pushes up 

 a regular series of fronds from a single crown, as in some 

 of the Asplenums. These fronds are I ft. or so long and 

 about o,in. or loin. wide. It needs a stove temperature, 

 while O. japonicum, on the other hand, is a plant for a 

 cool structure, and is also a good Fern for the dwelling- 

 house. Unlike the other, this produces a number of 

 creeping underground stems which push up fronds in 

 various directions. It forms a bright mass ol shining 

 green from ift. to I Sin. high. 



Osmiinda.— The Royal or Flowering Fern (O. regalis) 

 is a well-known British species, but there are two exotic 

 kinds well worthy of cultivation. One is O. japonica 

 corymbifera, a beautiful little dwarf plant with horizon- 

 tally spreading fronds crowded and clustered at the tips. 

 It is deciduous, while the other kind, O. palustris, is 

 evergreen. It is something like a miniature form of the 

 Royal f ern, hut the leaf stalks and young fronds are 

 bright crimson. 



Pellsea. — Useful decorative Ferns, some of which are 

 largely grown. Many of them have very dark shining 

 stems, and in .ill the marginal arrangement ol the spore 

 cases on the under-sides ol the fronds is a conspicuous 

 feature. Some of the Pellaeas are often grown under the 

 generic name of Platyloma. The most useful are : P. 

 atropurpurea, a variable kind, with bluish-tinted leaflets, 

 brown in the centre ; P. cordata, with spear-shaped 

 fronds and leaflets, the fronds ift or more in length ; 

 the variety flexuosa has peculiar zigzag stems ; P. falcata, 

 a low-growing Fern with long, narrow, once divided 

 fronds; P. geraniajfolia reaches a height of about ift., 

 the small, prettily divided fronds being borne on thin 

 wire-like stems a good greenhouse Fern; P. hastata, 

 whose terminal leaflets are distinctly halbert-shaped, hence 

 its name grows about l8in. high, and is excellent for 

 a cool house ; P. rotundifolia, the drooping fronds 

 about lit. long, and furnished on either side with small 

 roundish leaflets ; P. ternifolia forms a tuft of slender 

 semi-pendulous fronds ift. long. The leaflets, which 

 are of a I eautiful glaucous green tint, are each divided 

 into 3-pointed lobes. 



Platycerium. — The members of this family are unlike 

 any other class of Ferns, the popular name of Stag's-horn 

 as applied to them giving a good idea of the general 

 appearance of the massive, drooping, fertile fronds. The 

 barren ones are more or less erect, and in contour totally 

 unlike the others. In a native state they grow on the 

 branches of trees and similar positions ; hence under 

 cultivation their manner of growth should be considered. 

 They do well planted in the fork of a large dead branch 

 or in a pocket made of virgin cork. If in a pot, remove 

 a portion of one side in order to allow the fertile fronds 

 to develop. The compost most suitable for them is a 

 mixture of peat and Sphagnum Moss, which must be kept 

 moderately moist throughout the year. Some kinds are 



very difficult to obtain. The best of those in general 

 cultivation are : P. alcicorne, P. alcicorne majus, 

 P. grande, P. llilli, P. stemmaria, and P. Willincki. 



Polypodilim. — A large and varied family, containing 

 many species with quite simple fronds, while the bulk of 

 the others are only once divided. A great number of 

 them have fronds of a particularly hard, leathery nature ; 

 hence they are very valuable for decoration where exposed 

 to draughts. They are very difficult to classify, and 

 opinions vary greatly as to their nomenclature. The 

 plants that by one author are included in the genus Poly- 

 podium are perhaps by another split up under a dozen 

 heads. Most of them are of simple cultural requirements. 

 Of those usually regarded as Polypodiums, a selection of 

 the best would include : P. aureum, with bold massive 

 fronds, usually consisting of one elongated terminal leaflet 

 and a varied number of others ; the whole plant is of a 

 beautiful glaucous lint, while the golden scales which 

 clothe the creeping stems form another distinguishing 

 feature ; it is largely grown as a decorative plant, often 

 under the name of Phlebodium aureum ; the variety 

 glaucum has the bluish tint even more pronounced than 

 in the ordinary form ; 1'. crassifolium has thick sword- 

 shaped fronds iyd. long ; P. diversifolium, with once 

 divided fronds 2lt. long, forms an ornamental specimen ; 

 P. drepanum is noticeable among the Polypodiums from 

 its pointed and serrated leaflets ; P. Griffithianum, with 

 leathery lance-shaped fronds 6in. to Sin. long, is very 

 pretty and easily grown ; P. lingua has simple fronds, 

 pointed oblong in shape, and about 8in. or gin. long ; 

 the variety corymbiferum is curiously crested and tas- 

 selled ; P. membranaceum forms a tuft of strap-shaped 

 leaves iyd. long, and of a peculiar thin texture ; 

 P. Meyenianum, also met with as Aglaomorpha Meyen- 

 iana, is known as the Bear's-paw Fern, from the curious 

 stout, hairy, creeping stem ; the once divided leaves are 

 about iyd. long, while the leaflets are 2in. wide, except 

 on the upper part of the matured fronds when they are 

 fertile, and in this state reduced to very narrow propor- 

 tions ; it needs the same treatment as the Platyceriums ; 

 P. nigrescens is somewhat after the manner of P. aureum, 

 but the leaflets are narrower, and of a deep blackish 

 green ; P. pectinatum, comb-shaped fronds 2ft. long, that 

 bear a certain amount of resemblance to some of the 

 Nephrolepis ; P. pilosellioides, a little dense-growing, 

 freely-creeping kind, with simple egg-shaped fronds at 

 most not more than 3m. long ; P. pustulatum, with 

 simple fronds ift. long, on which the veins are beautifully 

 traced ; it is one of the most accommodating of Ferns ; 

 P. Schneideri, a beautiful hybrid kind, with Ironds more 

 divided and less glaucous than P. aureum. 



Polystiehum. — By some authors included in the genus 

 Aspidium, but far more generally met with in gardens 

 under the name of Polystiehum. They are nearly all of 

 easy culture, and distinguished by regular-shaped, much- 

 divided fronds, arranged in a fairly symmetrical manner. 

 The best are : P. capense, which forms a tuft, 2ft. high, 

 of much-divided, dark green leathery fronds ; P. falci- 

 nellum, whose fronds, from ift. to l8in. long, are of 

 bright green ; P. laserpitifolium, known also as Lastrea 

 Standishi, has large spreading fronds so much divided as 

 to be quite plumose in character ; P. mucronatum forms 

 a tuft of once divided fronds, remarkable for their curious 

 sharp-pointed, almost iriangular-shaped leaflets ; P. seto- 

 sum, a popular decorative kind, somewhat after the 

 manner of the British P. angulare, but more hairy and of 

 looser growth ; P. triangulare laxum, with dark green, 

 triangular-shaped leaflets and drooping fronds ; P. trip- 

 teron has fronds divided into three, consisting of one 

 large central division and two smaller ones at the base ; 

 the pointed leaflets are much cut and overlapping ; alto- 

 gether a full-sized frond is about iSin. long, and of a 

 light green colour ; P. tsus-sinense is a pretty little dwarf 

 Fern, with elegantly-cut leaves, valuable for small pots ; 

 P. vestitum forms a regular specimen l8in. high, and its 

 divided fronds have an upward tendency. 

 Pteris. — A widely distributed and extensive class of Ferns, 

 which are, as a rule, of easy culture, and contain amongst 



