Cultivation. 
13 
has the soil mellow again in an hour. The rock, however, though 
it absorbs the rain quickly, retains it for a long time, and parts 
with it very gradually to the small patches of soil lying above, so, 
though only 1 to 2 inches deep, they seldom get dust-dry. 
Following this, they require in cultivation very abundant drain- 
age, much more than the other kinds, but of such a nature that 
they can always depend on having the moisture at hand, and 
never altogether wanting. An 8-inch pot containing 5 inches 
broken brick, and 2 inches porous soil, placed in a flat saucer con- 
taining an inch of water meets their case well, as enough is drawn 
up by capillary attraction to keep them damp, while none has to 
be poured into the soil. This group includes Nothochlcena 
Eckloniana , Cheilanthes hirta , var. intermedia , and C. parviloba , 
C. pteroides , Pellcea hastaia, var. glauca , Gymnogramme cor data, 
Pellcea calomelanos, Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum , Pelloea auriculata , 
and all the Karroo and Namaqualand species. 
Cyathea is peculiar, in that it grows on high, bare, exposed 
hillsides, where the fronds gather in any dew or rain that falls, and 
distribute it about the crown where it is retained among the mass 
of scales. Its huge stems store up enough vitality to keep them 
alive for a year after removal to a lower level, but if large they 
seldom last more than that. If taken young they grow all right, 
and only require patience to develop healthy stems. 
Schizcea grows almost in water, and Ophioglossum in dry 
grassy slopes, but neither have much horticultural merit. 
A fern rockery behind a wall, and with an overhanging tree, 
suits most ferns well, as the wall and tree break the wind and 
sun’s rays, while the stones draw up moisture. The rock growing 
kinds can get the most sunny spots on this, and with all the others 
their natural requirements should be studied when they are being 
planted. Artistic arrangement, and the use of a suitable back 
ground of stones, or Hymenophyllum, add immensely to the 
effect, as may be seen on visiting such splendid Fern Grottos as 
those of L. Marquardt, Esq., Cape Town, or John Wood, Esq., 
Grahamstown. 
