114 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, May 25, 1858. 
as to be almost invisible without the aid of a magnifier, 
yet its powers of germinating are remarkable. The 
elder Mr. Shepherd, of the Botanic Gardens, at Liver¬ 
pool, succeeded in raising some Ferns, the seeds of 
which were brushed off some fronds that had been in 
his herbarium for ten years. I would not, however, 
advise the cultivator to keep his Fern seed any such 
length of time. If it has been saved early in the 
summer, sow part immediately, and the rest in spring, 
about April. To ensure success, prepare a sufficient 
number of shallow garden pans, with bellglasses to fit. 
Drain them well, and fill them with sandy heath mould, 
sifting a small part very fine for the surface. Press 
it down firmly, and lay on the surface a number of 
very small sandy stones ; then sprinkle the seed on the | 
whole, and cover with the glasses, Pack some moss ; 
round the rim of the pans, at the bottom of the bell- 1 
glasses, to keep in the moisture. This moss also pre- ' 
vents the washing away of the soil. Water must be i 
given only upon this moss. It,will enter the soil in- I 
side by capillary attraction, and keep it sufficiently 
moist. To prevent it drying, the glasses must be 
shaded from the sun. The best position for these 
seed pans will be in a cold frame, where the sun does 
not shine till towards evening. I choose evening, 
for the reason that a little heat will be thrown into the 
frame, and serve to keep up a rather warmer atmo¬ 
sphere than the open air. 
There is a difficulty about this mode, or, indeed, 
any other mode, of raising Ferns from seed, and that 
is, the pulling up any weeds that will spring up from 
the seed. I have prevented this by baking, not 
burning, the soil on a flue, or in an oven, till all the 
seeds in it were effectually destroyed. This fiery 
process also kills the eggs and larva of insects. The 
soil, when sufficiently baked, may be moistened gradu¬ 
ally, by laying upon a moist cloth, and covered with 
another cloth: gardener like, I always used a bass mat 
for that purpose. It will take several days to moisten 
it sufficiently. I prefer this gradual moistening to the 
more ready one of wetting it by means of the water-pot. 
Supposing all these points have been strictly attended 
to, and everything gone on well, the Ferns will soon 
make their appearance. The soil and stones will 
appear as if covered with green scales, from the base 
of which the first tiny frond will spring. It is very 
curious, and exceedingly interesting, to watch the 
progress of the germination and development of these 
young Ferns. Be very careful, however, to keep the 
soil moderately moist, and keep the glasses constantly 
on, to keep up an internal moist atmosphere. It has 
often been, to me, a matter of surprise how Fern 
seeds germinate and grow in their native localities. 
It can only be accounted for by the immense number 
of seeds each plant produces. Thousands and tens of 
thousands must perish for want of a proper pabulum 
and of circumstances favourable to their growth ; but 
the profusion of seed renders the entire loss of any 
species impossible. 
To return to our seedlings. Under our careful ma¬ 
nagement, as soon as the third frond appears, it will be 
time to think about potting them off—a most delicate 
operation. Take off the glass, and examine the small 
stones first; there is no difficulty with them. Take 
up each stone that has a Fern on it, and plunge the 
stone just within the soil in the tiny pot you have 
prepared for it, leaving the frond just above the soil, 
f °r J ucl1 delicate rock-loving species as Woods la 
dijperb° rea a native of the Scotch mountains, I have 
added to the heath mould some pieces of sandstone 
S1 ? e /? f 8Wau sll0t - TKis kee P s tlie soil °Pen, 
both to the influences of the air and the water. After 
potting ad off, replace them in the frame, and keep 
them close for a month; then gradually inure them 
to bear the open air; and when large enough, plant 
them out in the fernery. 
This may appear a tedious process, but the results, 
when successful, will repay all the trouble. The 
owner may, if he chooses, dispose of his surplus stock 
to some nurseryman ; or he may exchange with other 
growers that have not the means of raising seedlings. 
Another rougher mode of propagating liardy Ferns 
from seed, is to place some small pieces of sandstone, 
or even bricks, on the soil, in a shady, moist place ; 
then sprinkle the seed upon them, and cover the whole 
with a handglass. Many good kinds of Ferns have 
been raised in great numbers by tliis method. 
By Division .—Many species of Ferns send forth 
creeping rhizomas or root-stocks ; such are easily in¬ 
creased by taking off one or more of their offshoots. 
They may either be planted in a bed by themselves, 
and shaded till they are established; or, which is 
the better plan, be potted in suitable sized pots, placed 
in a cold frame, and kept close, and shaded for a week 
ortwo; and, when fully rooted, planted out inthe fernery, 
where they are required to grow. Other kinds, that do 
not have creeping roots, will, when of a considerable 
size, produce small side-shoots, which, as soon as they 
produce roots, may be taken off with a sharp knife, 
potted, and treated like those mentioned above. Some 
other species grow in a compact form, of which the 
Parsley-leaved Fernand Wall Rue Fern are examples. 
These must be taken up, and divided into as many 
pieces as will give a fair share of roots to each pot; 
put each division into a small pot, and shade them till 
fresh fronds and roots are produced. All these opera¬ 
tions are pleasant and recreative, giving useful and 
innocent amusement to many persons in every rank of 
life- T. Appleby. 
{To he continued.) 
BED SPIDER ON WALL FRUIT. 
It would be superfluous to say anything in favour of the 
remarkably flue weather we had from the 13th to the end of 
March, or of the favourable opportunity we had of getting 
the bulk of our work under our thumb. But, I will just say 
that, at the very time we were rejoicing at the progress we 
were making in digging, and planting, and getting in the early 
seeds, w ith other work of a preparatory nature, under such 
favourable circumstances, we little thought (at least, some of 
us) how favourable those hot days were to the production of 
one of the greatest enemies to our fruit trees, viz., the red 
spider. Though, perhaps, there may be some that have found 
it out ere this to their cost, to the tune of the loss of the first of 
the foliage of their Peaches and Nectarines. 
It is universally admitted, that prevention is better than 
cure, and, endeavouring to act upon this principle, I began 
examining my trees as soon as the buds began to push ; but, 
to my surprise, I found they had stolen a march on me, for, 
on unfolding the leaf buds, I found them there almost as 
thick as they could be packed together. 
Now, this was a manoeuvre which I was puzzled how to 
bring my force to bear upon. The preparation of lime and 
sulphur, you have so frequently recommended, I had pre¬ 
viously used with success : but then the leaves were generally 
pretty well developed, so that I could see their effects before I 
began to look for the cause; and, as generally happened, a 
good many of the earliest of the leaves woidd shrivel up and 
drop off just as the fruit Avas setting, which Avas charged to the 
account of Frost, Sun, and Co., though now, I believe, not 
altogether justifiably. 
Neither was this all, for, on taking off some of the blossoms, 
and opening them, they were literally lined with them. This 
was another staggerer. The trees were in full bloom, and 
nothing could look more promising, both as to quantity and 
quality of bloom. “ Well,” I said, mentally, “ I have faith in 
the wash I have always applied ; but then, to apply it with 
the trees in full bloom, liow then ? I don’t know what to do.” 
Well, I pondered over it all day, and at night I called a 
