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As it is a great rarity to meet with a bulb-bearing wildling, 
any further observation on this mode of culture is 
unnecessary. 
4. Others root from the tip of their fronds. As the old 
laurel is made to produce a young one by having its shoots 
pinned down and a layer formed, so some of the Spleenworts 
and other Ferns will grow if the tips of the fronds are fixed 
near the soil. The division of these must be done most 
carefully. Very seldom are fine specimens obtained by such 
means. It is probable that the new plant partakes of the 
age of that from which it is severed, and never enjoys the 
freshness of youth. For a similar reason, many have 
considered, with regard to grafting fruit trees, that the 
grafted shoot paticipates in the age of the tree from whence 
it is taken, and hence account for the good old-fashioned 
fruit of our forefathers becoming extinct. The only way of 
having what is young, strong and healthy, is by sowing 
occasionally. 
5. Finally, as to transplanting, so much has been said in 
the course of the work that little more need be added. It 
must never be forgotten that the roots should not be broken. 
The natural situation, position, and soil, should be imitated. 
A lady wished to have some Maidenhair Spleenworts inter- 
spersed with her other Ferns. She placed earth in a saucer 
and planted them in it. They languished and died. She 
set the saucer in an erect position after inserting new ones ; 
they now were in their natural place, and began to thrive, 
and exhibit their pretty round leafiets with black shining 
stalks. The vertical position may also have served to drain 
off the stagnant water, and for this reason have caused the 
experiment to be so successful. Most Ferns love damp 
situations and watering, but there should be a free circulation 
and no stagnation. They also delight in shade. Even those 
which grow in the sun, are finer and more luxuriant in a 
less exposed situation and in a northern aspect. Smaller 
species prefer a shallow soil, and few are fond of rich, highly 
conditioned, valuable ground. It is not on the banks of the 
Axe, or in our well-farmed, well-watered meadows, that our 
finest plants luxuriate, but in the poor, hungry, loose soil 
close to the streamlets, which feed and supply our river as 
