The Fern House. 
165 
not simply to live , but to grow and increase. For the rockery there is nothing 
better than brick or stone, because of the retention of moisture by these 
materials and the liking of ferns to root next to their surfaces, and even into 
their substance. Circumstances may prohibit the selection of the material 
known to be the best, and we must then be content with the next best. 
Hard vitreous substances, impenetrable by moisture, are unfit for rockeries for 
ferns under glass, yet they may be used if nothing better can be obtained, 
provided always there is a large body of soil and abundant openings amongst 
the facings for the searching roots of ferns to push their way for nourishment. 
In towns, the most convenient and suitable stuff for rockeries is the waste of 
the brick-kiln. The large masses of brick that come from the base of the 
kiln, and which are commonly known as “ burrs,” are as good for the purpose 
as can be desired; their crannies and crevices suit the rooting habits of the 
plants, and they are suitable also in colour, and after a time a slow decay of 
their surface takes place, the result being that troops of mosses come of their 
own accord, and dot the structure with patches of emerald. Stone is better 
still, if in rough blocks, and sandstone especially, if it can be had, will favour 
the well-doing of every inmate of the house. We have seen roots piled up 
and planted, and they answered well; but they decay too fast, and are apt to 
become suddenly clothed with a myriad kinds of objectionable fungi, wffiich 
are difficult to eradicate. The best staple soil for the purpose is good peat; 
but as in many districts this is a costly material, it is necessary to eke it out. 
Our rockery was built by a bricklayer who thoroughly understood the 
requirements of the case. We made a bed of loam for the foundation, and 
upon this the peat was piled or thrust in as the work proceeded ; and when 
the bricklayer had finished his work, we found plenty of large and small 
pockets opening into the solid bank behind; in these the plants were placed 
and filled in with a good mixture of peat and sharp sand. 
Drainage is of more importance wfith reference to the comfort of the culti¬ 
vator than the well-doing of the ferns. It must be understood, however, that 
the accumulation of stagnant water at the base of the rockery is an evil to be 
guarded against, to say nothing of a possibly sloppy state of the paths or 
pavement, if the house is unprovided with drainage. Let it suffice that this 
point has been mentioned, for in practice it is of less consequence than in 
theory. If the fern house stands on a tolerably dry soil, and the cultivator 
acts judiciously in the management of it, there will never be such an 
accumulation of water as will be objectionable or inconvenient. 
