46 
BRITISH FERNS. 
dressed flagstones should be laid upon the floor, and the 
heating-apparatus fixed. The “contributors to the 
journal of horticulture/’ in their ‘ Fern Manual/ a most 
valuable book, from which we have drawn much infor- 
mation upon stove and greenhouse ferns, suggests that 
“a four-inch wrought-iron Monro’s cannon-boiler will 
shoot out ample boiling water into the 500 feet of four- 
inch pipe, which they propose to heat a very large fern- 
house with. The roof should be slanted from the two 
sides of the ridge-tree, and glazed with rough plate-glass, 
- — all the wood work being painted well with white lead 
and then varnished.” 
The ‘ Fern Manual ’ gives directions for the best com- 
post to be used. — “ Soil wherein ferns are to be grown 
should be of a porous nature, and that is not liable to 
become adhesive by frequent and copious supplies of 
water. One-half turfy peat, such as orchid-growers use, 
and that which is a light colour, with pieces of decayed 
moss, and rather sandy, is the best ; one-fourth turfy 
loam, that which is called yellow or hazel loam is to be 
preferred ; one-eighth pieces of greenstone, broken to 
about the size of a walnut ; one-eighth silver-sand; in- 
corporate the above well together, chopping the peat 
with a spade, but do not pass any of the compost through 
a riddle. In the above compost they thrive amazingly. 
They are not benefited by the application of manure, 
or by manure water of any description ; to some species 
it is so detrimental as to cause death. The compost should 
be worked into the crevices and hollows of the rock- 
work with a pointed piece of wood, or some such imple- 
ment.” 
The rock-work thus prepared can have soil added to 
suit the different ferns when they are planted. Leaf- 
