54 
BRITISH FERNS. 
open moors and naked hill-sides. In Ireland it takes 
the position of our common brake, and, like that, is 
employed as a packing material for fish and fruit. It 
is found in Scotland, and is alluded to by Sir Walter 
Scott in 4 Wavedey/ who expresWs~ its love for moist, 
shady woodlands thus: 
“Where the copse-wood is the greenest, 
Where the fountain glistens sheenest, 
Where the morning dew lies longest, 
There the Lady Fern grows strongest.” 
It occurs in Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America, 
though the specimens sent from America differ in 
many respects from the true Lady Fern. 
No collection, either in the open air or in a case, is 
complete without the beautiful Lady Fern. It bears 
civilisation admirably. In rock-work it should occupy 
a low, boggy situation, as it loves shade and moisture, 
planted among turfy soil, kept well moistened and 
drained. Placed at the edge of a cavern or pool of 
■water, no object can be more lovely, and nothing will 
grow so freely. A modern writer says— 
“ Supreme in her beauty, beside the full urn, 
In the shade of the rock stands the tall Lady Fern.” 
VARIETIES. 
Among the varieties of the Lady Fern we would 
mention as most persistent:— 
Asplenium Filix Fcemina latifolium, known 
by its more hardy appearance—broader pinnules, 
