the latter whi 
'' *a variety, 
uch beauty. The 
orming along the side 
tailed a wing. This is a 
The variety cristatum i 
of the frond,_and^the points of all the pinnse^ 
varieties of the Male Fern and Lady Fern. 
There are mai 
nded. In other 
■ated, and in some they are very 
1 some very elegant forms the 
conspicuously spinulose. 
pinnae and the pinnules 
and form. The variations are, however, so numerous, that 
we can only refer for an account of them to our Handbook, 
mievkftialy 1 
of th: 
•Fern; it grows 
ferring, likem 
of free (not stagnant) water. 
hedge-banks and in lowland woods, pre- 
" ’ ’ ” ” ce of plenty 
rockwork, the Soft 
_ _ _|_m_,_.mt; and acquit * 
it does, considerable size,it maybe made to produce s 
Prickly Shield Fern i 
CHAPTEB TO. 
ielclFernv 
in modem times broken up into two groups. One of these, 
the genus Polystidmm, to which the name Shield Fern is 
retained, formed the subject of our last chapter. The other 
group is called Lastrea, and we distinguish them by the 
popular name. Buckler Fet 
The Buckler Ferns are 1 
notch at the hinder part, thus becoming kidney-shaped, and 
by having these covers attached to the frond by the notched 
part This group includes some of the largest and most 
ijpOQUBon of our native species. They are nearly all of them 
jfifliiTi ni l I for their elegance, and several of them retain 
’ ‘ i - sheltered situations ; l “* i 
