9 
FERNS : BRITISH AND FOREIGN. 
their cultivation is so great that they are for the 
most part confined to the gardens of the wealthy. 
Ferns, on the contrary, may, as a general rule, 
be grown in a comparatively inexpensive manner. 
The discovery made by Mr. N. B. Ward, that these 
plants can be grown to great perfection in small 
ornamental closed cases (now well known as “ Wardian 
Cases ”), suitable not only for the drawing-rooms of 
the wealthy, but for humbler dwellings, renders it pos- 
sible for amateurs to indulge their love of Ferns without 
going to the expense of erecting hothouses and em- 
ploying a staff of gardeners ; and it is to be hoped 
that this will be the means of retaining them in favour 
and spreading them still wider. 
The enumeration in the following pages shows that 
at the present time above nine hundred exotic species of 
Ferns are cultivated in the various public and private 
gardens in this country; and of these by far the 
greater number have been introduced during the last 
quarter of a century. A very large, indeed almost 
a complete, collection of them may at present be 
seen in the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew, where, 
during forty years, I devoted attention to their 
cultivation, and to the study of their generic and 
specific distinctions, using every endeavour in my 
power, assisted by the extensive influence of the 
eminent Director, Sir W. J. Hooker, to introduce 
new species, both by raising them from spores 
taken from my herbarium, and through correspon- 
dence with persons residing in our Colonies and the 
Superintendents of Botanic and other gardens on the 
Continent. Being well acquainted with the latter 
branch of the subject, — the introduction of new 
