MOUNTAIN FERN. 
189 
Sami. Fredk. Gray’s ‘Natural Arrangement of British Plants : 
there is a question of priority between two of these names, 
montanum and Oreopteris, which appears to issue in favour of 
the former ; this however has been rejected as clashing with 
Cystopteris montana (of the present work), formerly known as 
Polypodium montanum of Allioni : f the name of fragrans 
is objectionable, since I have good reason for believing it is 
not the first-described Polypodium fragrans of Linneus, and 
the name odoriferum is of much later date. In many of its 
characters this fern is so like the last that it is constantly taken 
for it, a circumstance which has led to a profusion of errors 
respecting localities. Schott places it in his genus Thelypteris,% 
Presl in LastrcBa,^ and Hooker in AspidAum.^ Its nearest ally 
among British Ferns appears to me to be Polypodium Phegop- 
teris, and its connexion with the species of Aspidium, Polysti- 
chum or Lastr<Ba, is by no means evident. 
The roots of this fern are numerous, strong, tough and pene- 
trating ; they appear to spread in every direction from a large, 
scaly, tufted rhizoma, which yearly increases in magnitude. In 
favorable situations this sends forth thirty or forty fronds, which 
spread with but little regularity round a common centre : imme- 
diately these begin to unroll they exhibit the pinnae, placed at 
right angles with the main stalk, and are not convolute as in the 
allied ferns, a character worthy of particular notice, because 
unusual among our ferns. The fronds, when fully expanded, 
are very variable in size, dependant chiefly on situation, but also 
in great measure on the age of the plant. An extraordinary 
number of seedlings are met with where this fern is abundant : 
these for two or three years bear little or no fruit, but after the 
third year fructification appears in abundance, and from that 
period all the fronds are fertile. Pay thought the seedling a 
distinct species Smith appears to dissent from this, but gives 
it as a variety.* ** ^ In the figure of the frond there is little or no 
* Nat. Arr. ii. 6. 
f Allioni, Flor. Fed. n. 2410, J Sckott, Genera Filiciim. 
§ Tentamen Pteridographise, 76. || Brit. Flor. 439. 
^ Filix pumila saxatilis altera Clusii. — Syn. 122. 
** Aspidium OreopteriSy /3.— -Eng. Flor. ir. 274, 
