104 
BRITISH FERNS. 
found on Snowdon, and is well known by the guides 
of that district as growing there. 
This little fern is said to do well in a fernery, in 
a sheltered part, but it must not be kept very wet. 
Neither this species nor its variety seems to bear con¬ 
finement in closed cases or frames, as they require a 
free circulation of air, without which they become 
feeble and die. 
VARIETY. 
WOODSIA ILVENSIS HYPERBOREA, or Alpine Fern, 
called by Newman Woodsia alpina y although con¬ 
sidered as a distinct species by some writers, does not 
differ so materially from Woodsia ilvensis as to con¬ 
stitute more than a variety. It is known by its 
narrower fronds, being of a thinner texture, less 
hairy and scaly; while the pinnae are less opposite, 
and shorter, and more triangular in their general 
outline. 
It is a very rare species, found in the fissures of 
Alpine rocks, mostly in places little visited. 
LYCOPODIUM. 
THERE are certain families of plants more closely 
allied to the ferns than to any other group, and it 
seems only right to mention them in a book on 
British Ferns, so that they may be recognised, and 
their relationship easily ascertained by the young 
