A Dictionary of Choice Ferns. 
307 
POl^YPODlVyi—eontlnued. 
partaking to a great extent of the divided character pecu- 
liar to P. V. clegantissimum. As the plant increased in age 
and in size, the cutting of its fronds also hecame more 
distinct, for, while they retained the glaucous colour of 
those of P. aureum, and were produced from a similarly 
thick, fleshy rhizome clothed with silvery scales, they were 
divided quite as much as those of P. v. elegantissimum, 
and eventually became of a broader and more triangular 
shape, their leafy portion measuring 9in. each way. 
P. sub=auriculatum. 
This stove species, native of Malaysia i^md the Philip- 
pine Islands, is probably one of the best-known land most 
extensively cultivated of the whole genus. It is a very 
useful and decorative plant, and as a basket Fern for the 
warm house it has hardly any equal, its graceful fronds, 
which are produced from a wide-creeping rhizome clothed 
with small, dull-coloured scales, attaining 8ft. to 10ft. or 
more in length, and Sin. to 12in. in breadth. They are 
borne on firm, naked stalks 6in. to 12in. long and of a 
glossy nature; their leaflets, 4in. to 6in. long and |in. to 
lin. broad, are slightly toothed in young plants, whereas 
in older specimens the fronds have their leaflets set farther 
apart and narrower, with smooth edges, rounded or 
even eared at the base. The sori, as in several other 
species, are immersed in the leaflets, forming little pro- 
tuberances on their upper surface. P, Peinivardtii is 
synonymous with this species. P. suhauriculatum can 
advantageously be utilised for covering dead trunks of Tree 
Ferns; in such, positions it makes a very beautiful object, 
and grows apace, as it delights in sending its roots and 
rhizomes into partly-decayed vegetable matter. In the 
centre of a warm conservatory it makes a Fern surpassing 
all others in elegance, and where there is plenty of height 
to allow the fronds space to hang, a specimen with number- 
less fronds 10ft. to 12ft. long is a sight not easily forgotten. 
If grown in a basket, it will derive great benefit from a small 
portion of chopped sphagnum added to the mixture of the 
soil, and will stand a fair amount of strong light. 
P. trichodes. 
In general appearance this magnificent, delicate-looking, 
greenhouse species is not unlike a gigantic Asplenium 
{A thyrium) Filix-foemina . 
P. verrucosum. 
A really magnificent, stove species, of large dimensions; 
native of Malaysia and the Philippine Islands. Its dis- 
tinctly-pinnate fronds, 3ft. to 4ft. long and 1ft. broad, are 
X 2 
