CHAPTER YII. 
THE HARD FERi^. 
{Blechnum Spicant. Syn. Lomaria Spicant). 
XCEPT in limestone districts, this species is very 
generally distributed, and is one of the most 
easily distinguished of all the British Perns, as, 
with the exception of the totally di:fferent 
Parsley Pern, it is the only one which throws 
up two distinct sorts of fronds — viz,, barren 
ones, which are drooping and divided once, like 
a double comb with broad, blunt teeth all but 
touching each other ; and fertile ones, which are 
fewer and much longer, bearing considerably narrower divisions 
with comparatively wide spaces between, the leafy portion being 
replaced by the spore-heaps and their protecting cover. This 
very beautiful Pern is a thorough evergreen, though the com- 
paratively few fertile fronds perish when the spores are shed 
in the late autumn; and being of a tough nature, with a 
smooth, glossy surface, it retains its beauty quite through 
the winter. It is found growing most luxuriantly in deep, 
damp dells, where leaf mould forms the entire soil and water 
is plentiful. Here the fertile fronds attain a height of some- 
times 3ft. In some spots in woods it may be found literally 
carpeting the ground in a small state, rooting into absolute 
clay; and since in pot culture pure leaf mould is apt in time 
