September 6, 1894. 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
221 
the sports— i.e,, delicacy of structure, demands extra protection. Many 
of the very heavily crested forms, for instance, have such a sponge-like 
capacity for retaining moisture in their finely comminuted dense crests 
that protection by glass from hail or rain is quite essential to the 
preservation of their beauty, and in point of fact Ferns of this class in 
my own collection never get a drop of water on their fronds, all moisture 
being carefully supplied to the roots and surrounding soil only. It is 
not merely that the heavy crests are apt to decay at their centres if 
constantly wet, but the weight alone of the contained water is apt to 
break down the fronds. Many, too, of the finely divided plumose forms 
are so dense as to run the same risk, so that it may be regarded 
as a general maxim that syringing is a mistake. Nature it is true in 
the ferniest districts does this lavishly enough, but we must bear in 
mind that from the evolutionary point of view many of the varietal 
forms are by no means the “fittest” for survival in the struggle for 
existence, some of the cultural varieties being quite unsuited to stand 
the wear and tear of normal climatal conditions. In all private collections 
of any magnitude we find therefore that this difficulty is met by either 
cold greenhouses or frames being erected for the accommodation of the 
special favourites, and also for that of the young broods where propa¬ 
gation is in question. 
General Culture. 
The natural habitats of nearly all Ferns are chiracterised by a 
rugged and broken surface of the soil or rock formation, or failing this 
by greater or less inclination. To attempt to grow Ferns to perfection 
in flat level beds as we do flowers is a mistake, while the nearer we 
approach to a sloping bank of rocks the better. In nature, too, since 
shade is one of the requisites, we shall find the slopes of northerly 
aspect to be clothed the thickest, hence a sloping rockwork facing north 
is a desideratum. This aspect, however, clearly demands some screen 
from the wind, and tall trees at some distance are desirable. Overhanging 
trees are objectionable for two reasons—first. Ferns like abundance of 
top light, and get drawn and weakly in dense shade; and secondly, 
the roots of trees are far too apt to spread into the leafy soil provide 
for the Ferns, and thus more or less rob and starve them. In woods we 
see this everywhere exemplified. It is in the open spaces and clearings 
that the Ferns are thickest; under the trees they are usually conspicuous 
by their absence. 
In building a rockery all formality of design should be sedulously 
avoided; the proper way is to throw up a rough earthen bank of the 
form desired, under which as a foundation and to facilitate drainage a 
good heap of old brick rubbish may be put. The bank should be made 
somewhat higher than needed, as it is sure to settle some inches. This 
done it should stand for some days to permit such settlement before the 
rockwork proper is added. In places where there is abundance of nadve 
porous stone, this may be used in roughest possible pieces, but in the 
vicinity of brickyards the “ burrs ” produced by the amalgamation of 
bricks in the kilns form very good and congenial substitutes, any bricky 
corners being knocked off with a hammer. 
Next provide a good open compost, half leaf mould and half turfy 
loam, with a dash of well-washed road or silver sand ; mix this well 
together. Now, commencing at the bottom of the slope, dig out holes 
deep enough to half bury the largest burrs or stones, setting these firmly 
in so that they settle down by their own gravity, and are not liable to 
topple over. Work some of the compost well in around and behind, and 
start again higher up, aiming only at making as many diverse nooks 
and pockets as possible, and inserting irregularly large blocks here and 
there for effect. If large rough slabs are available, an appearance of 
stratification can be imparted by inserting these judiciously on the face 
always at the same low angle, while if they be bedded one on the other 
with good compost between they afford splendid chinks for small Perns 
of the rock and wall species. 
Most of the Ferns can be inserted in their places during the process 
of building, the whole being finally “settled” by a copious watering. 
If thus constructed there will be no fear of disastrous collapse and down- 
toppling in frosty weather, whereas if the usual course be taken of 
making up the bank, building up the rocks and filling in the soil all at 
one operation, it will be found that the soil will settle down by itself, 
leaving the rocks or burrs on the top as a kind of loose crust without 
any coherence at all, while any Ferns which have been simultaneously 
inserted will be found chaotically buried in their recesses. The best 
time for such rockwork construction is the early spring, and the next 
best the autumn, since in summer it is rather a trial to the Ferns if the 
rockwork be in the open and warm dry weather follow the operation, 
besides which the plants being in full frondage are sure to be damaged 
and look unsightly for the rest of the season. In planting, the nature 
of the Ferns, whether deciduous or evergreen, should be considered, so 
that in the winter there may be a fairly distributed display of the ever¬ 
greens ; this, however, refers rather to collections under glass, since out 
of doors the rough weather is sure to batter the fronds down, though 
they may still remain green. 
Hardy Ferns under Glass. 
In glass houses it is not well to have them heated for hardy Ferns, 
or, at any rate, if there be pipes no heat should be applied until March. 
In my own fernery there are no heating appliances at all, since I found 
that even with quite moderate warmth, sufficient only to keep out the 
frost, the period of winter rest was so shortened that growth began 
quite two months too soon, the result being weakened constitutions and 
vermin galore, whereas when kept perfectly cold they did not start until 
March or even April, and were then as vigorous as could be desired. 
Protected from the wintry blasts many of the evergreens retain their 
beauty until the new fronds arise, and hence if properly distributed the 
house will look green and fresh all the year round. 
Under glass it is, of course, optional whether the Ferns be planted in 
the soil in rockwork or planted in pots which are masked by the rocks or 
burrs, or finally kept simply in pots which are staged in the usual 
manner. In my opinion the middle course is the best. If planted in the 
soil under glass the Ferns are practically fixtures, and cannot be 
removed or readjusted without actual transplanting, whereas if placed 
in rustic pots these can be built in as it were with burrs or stones, 
and as growth or a desire for variety renders a change advisable they 
can be shifted at will without detriment. In this case when the 
deciduous species become shabby, evergreens can be installed in their 
stead, and so the house is always kept presentable. 
In building a glass house for hardy Ferns it is well to erect the walls 
right up to the spring of the roof, since with a side light they are apt to 
look their best from the outside, while with a top light only they grow 
much more symmetricallv. The walls, too, can be covered either 
with Booty's wall tiles, flat-sided rustic pots, cork pockets, or even 
with blocks of brown fibrous peat kept in place by galvanised wire. As 
under congenial conditions seedlings speedily make their appearance, 
a wall may be dotted over with specimens of varieties of Polypodium 
vulgare, P. dryopteris, P. phegopteris, as a start, and if good forms of 
L. dilatata be anywhere near, a crop of these and others will soon make 
themselves at home, and form a very beautiful mask for an otherwise 
bare and unsightly surface. 
The fernery should be in such a position as to get as little sun as 
possible, since coolness is a great desideratum as well as shade, and if 
the wall or roof were subjected to a baking sun, the plants would suffer 
severely in the hot summer months, even though shaded with scrim or 
tiffany. A deep cutting roofed with glass, and shaded by tall trees on 
the south would form an ideal fernery. I have contrived a cool 
receptacle for small-growing Ferns in an open sunny garden by digging a 
trench running east and west, about a foot deep and 2 feet wide, the 
earth being thrown up on the south to form a bank sloping in that 
direction, and supported by a brick wall 3 feet high which forms the 
south side of the pits. Ordinary roof slates keep up the soil on the 
north of the pits and project some inches above it, while a row of lights 
hinged to the brick wall and resting on the said slate edges form the 
whole into a long glazed sunken frame, the bottom of which is covered 
with red porous tiles. The south or sunny slope of the bank accommo¬ 
dates a number of choice alpines, and the pits a collection of Blechnums 
and other Ferns of smaller growth. 
For general purposes the best compost consists of a mixture of two 
parts of peat or leaf mould, two parts of turfy loam, and one part of 
sharp road or silver sand. In potting, drainage must be as well looked 
after as with flowering plants, since with few exceptions Ferns grow in 
places where the freest possible percolation exists. Crocks must, 
therefore, be used and covered with some rough material before the soil 
is pat in ; the plants should then be potted moderately firmly and well 
watered. The pots should not stand in saucers, or if they do the saucers 
must be emptied of accumulated water, otherwise the soil becomes 
soured with stagnant moisture and the plants suffer. 
During the winter they must be kept thoroughly moist. Nature at 
this period keeps them at their wettest, while under culture the mistaken 
notion that while they are resting they can be left severely alone leads 
to many a gap being seen in the ranks when the growing season re-appears. 
It is my custom to pour a little water over the crowns repeatedly during the 
winter months, since the actual period of rest is much shorter than it 
appears, and the crowns will be seen to swell and expand for weeks 
before the fronds actually rise, a clear sign that the roots are busily at 
work, and consequently need the moisture afforded,—0. T. Druery, 
F.L.S., F.B.H.S. 
MELONS AT WOBURN ABBEY. 
Under the above heading “ W. I.” writes on Melons in your Journal 
of the 9th ult. I should not have asked that this reply be inserted had 
" VV. I.” simply confined himself to Melons and their culture, without 
the indirect hitting that I alone can thoroughly understand, having had 
charge of the gardens for the last twenty-two years. After all, there 
is nothing new in Mr. Calvert’s cultivation of Melons, or anything 
extraordinary in growing two on each plant, or that he should place 
“high quality before everything.” A high quality Melon, to me, 
should include appearance, size and flavour, but as the final judgment 
of the fruit depends on its flavour, all practical gardeners should cer¬ 
tainly grow Melons for flavour, sacrificing appearance and size if they 
cannot otherwise obtain superior flavour. 
“Some idea” (says your correspondent) “of the unsuitableness of 
some of the present houses for Melon culture may be gathered from the 
fact that the bead room is so limited that the plants had to be zig¬ 
zagged as many as three times in order to keep them within bounds, 
and the fruits are hanging so low as to nearly touch the pot.” He 
also says, “ There is every likelihood of a large, well planned range of 
Melon houses being constructed soon, but in the meantime the best has 
to be done with the low, flat places available.” 
Outsiders, from the number of letters I have received, evidently 
believe from the above lines that faulty, improper structures have been 
erected at Woburn Abbey for Melon growing. The fact is, Melons have 
not been required at Woburn for the last twenty years, and no house 
was ever erected for their growth at any time. Those that were grown 
