2d4 Choice Ferns for Amateurs. 
With the exception of P. alcicorne, which 
thrives best in an ordinary greenhouse temperature, 
all the Platyceriums require stove treatment. They 
succeed best and become most effective when planted 
in the fork of an ordinary tree-branch or in an arti- 
ficial wall-pocket made of virgin cork. P. alcicorne 
also has a most pleasing appearance when grown as 
a basket plant, as its roots, which usually produce 
young plants on their surface, soon make a perfect 
ball, imparting a singular effect, growing as it does 
in all directions — sideways, head downwards, &c. — 
with equal vigour. The compost which suits them 
best is a mixture, in about equal parts, of rough, 
fibrous peat and sphagnum. The plants are particu- 
larly fond of strong light, and should receive water 
at the roots with moderation. The best way to keep 
them in good condition in that respect is to soak 
them thoroughly, and then to wait until the foliage 
begins to droop and to present a soft, withered 
aspect before soaking them again. Platyceriums 
are usually propagated by means of young plants 
produced from the adventitious buds on their roots. 
P. grande, how^ever, has never been known to pro- 
duce any, and consequently it must be propagated 
by means of spores; this method, though somewhat 
slow, is also resorted to for other species when 
required in great quantities. 
P. alcicorne. 
Altliougli the commonest species of tlie genus, this is lan 
extremely interesting Fern, found growing on branches of 
trees in Australia, Java, the East Indies, Madagascar, and 
Peru. It is of easy culture, thriving equally well in the 
greenhouse, the cool conservatory, or the stove. Of all 
known Platyceriums, it is the one which grows the quickest 
and. which is the most easily propagated from the young 
plants produced on its roots. Its barren fronds are rounded 
and convex, with edges waved and lobes spreading, and are 
downy when young. The fertile frond® are 2ft. to 3ft. 
long, clustered, of a somewhat upright habit, twice or 
thrice forked, and of a thick, leathery texture; their strap- 
shaped and bluntish ultimate divisions have the fructifica- 
tion disposed, in the last forks and at their base in very 
irregular patches, and the under-«urface is covered with a 
thin, cottony down. In the variety ma jus y which requires 
