258 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
December 23, 1893. 
wall to the required dimensions ; and my friend 
walked of with the prize. The rights of property 
here were in no wise held sacred, but no questions 
were asked ; sufficient for my friend that he had 
obtained his heart's desire. But where is the Fern 
now ? Gone ! Gone like the one I possessed; be¬ 
cause we did not inherit the Mendip air, or the 
Mendip soil. The Shield Ferns (Aspidiums) may 
next be considered, for their constitutions are robust, 
while, at the same time, their extreme beauty of out¬ 
line fit them for a place in every garden. The old 
name of Polystichum is the one by which most gar¬ 
deners know them, although it seems to me the new 
one is the better, inasmuch as the common name is 
simply a translation of the foreign. Aspideon is 
Greek for little shield; and so we find this term 
cropping up in connection with other plants, as, for 
instance, in that best of all room plants, the 
Aspidistra. But this subject of names is, in itself, 
a most interesting one, and well worth distinct and 
separate treatment. 
The Shield Ferns, however, are not numerous 
specifically; they only comprise A. lonchitis (the 
Holly Fern), A. aculeatum (the hard prickly Fern), 
and A. angulare (the soft prickly Fern). The 
varieties, also, are somewhat limited, except in the 
case of A. angulare. All are evergreen, and therefore 
charming winter subjects. Add to this their com¬ 
parative boldness of outline and freedom of growth 
and you have a genus of Ferns of a very ornamental 
character. The Holly Fern I have never seen in its 
native wilds, for it is a true mountaineer, and only to 
be obtained at high elevations. The other species 
are more or less common according to locality. I 
say the other species, but 'tis sometimes difficult to 
distinguish “ t’other from which.” Botanists are 
not agreed—but less this pass. Nature never names, 
and so we go blundering on and try to circumvent 
her. 
As the distinguishing difference between these two 
confreres are noted in their names, we will consider 
that sufficient for our present purpose. The hard 
prickly Shield Fern is very generally distributed, 
but is by no means so sportive in character as its 
near relation the soft prickly Shield Fern, which has 
yielded a large number of beautiful forms. The 
magnificent and densely feathery variety, known as 
A. angulare divisilobum plumosum densum, has 
been mentioned before, and notwithstanding its 
remarkable name is a Fern to be coveted. Mr. 
Druery says it is the ne plus ultra of division and 
delicacy, and has been justly called the Todea 
superba of British Ferns. Theoriginahvas a wild find, 
but has been so much improved by careful selection 
as to be quite unrecognisable in its highest develop¬ 
ment. The skill which has been brought to bear in 
the matter of spore-raising and careful selection, by 
several eminent specialists, must, in the future, 
produce some wonderful transformations. A angulare 
polydactylum is a very fine variety, being flatly 
crested and divided into many points, or fingers, as 
the varietal name implies. 
The Aspleniums come next in order, and comprise 
a large and important class of British Ferns. The 
Lady Ferns are included in this genus, although 
their garden synonym is Athyrium. The Lady 
Ferns are, perhaps, the most beautiful of all the 
beautiful forms of this class of vegetation. They 
are herbaceous it is true, but look upon them in 
their season when their fronds have developed their 
delicate green— 
"Not by burn, in wood, or dale. 
Grows anything so fair.” 
Poets claim the Lady Fern as their own. Why ? 
because it is unquestionably the most graceful of all 
Ferny forms. 
Those then who would see this entrancing member 
of the flowerless family in the greatest luxuriance 
must— 
" Hie to haunts right seldom seen, 
Lovely, lonesome, cool, and green ; ” 
or to, say, the valley of the East Lyn, North Devon, 
and gaze upon their indescribable beauty. The 
scene which there presents itself no pen can 
adequately represent, it is a ‘‘creation of dreamy 
wonder and delight such as Nature alone can pro¬ 
duce.” The Lady Ferns love moisture, and here 
they have it, for the little, turbulent, restless river 
runs cascading on towards the ocean in sparkling 
glee, ever and anon tumbling over some huge 
boulder, or impinging against a moss-covered stone. 
Now the stream suddenly disappears only to grow 
more frantic in its efforts to force its way presently 
over some further obstacle which impedes its 
progress. Thus it fumes and foams like some wild 
proletariat, while the air is made moist and vapoury, 
and the trees overhead give the requisite shade- 
such are the conditions which Ferns love, and such 
are the conditions under which Ferns are seen at 
their very best. 
There are many varieties of the Lady Fern to be 
found in this favoured locality, and 1 possess 
several which differ from the normal type. These, 
with many others, were carried across Exmoor in a 
blinding rain—a journey which I shall never forget. 
A very beautiful variety of this Fern (A. Filix- 
foemina plumosum) has the pinnules much divided, 
and is in consequence even more graceful than the 
type. This yielded a still more exquisite form 
known as A. F.-f. Kalothrix, and is so beautiful that 
it stands alone among our British Ferns for deli¬ 
cacy of beauty and fineness of division. This was 
exhibited recently at the Agricultural Hall by 
Messrs. W. & J. Birkenhead, of Sale, near Man¬ 
chester, and created much comment. A. F.-f. 
corymbiferum is also a fine variety with stout, erect, 
arching fronds, crested at the apices and spread out 
like corymbs, from which fact the Fern receives its 
name. A. F.-f. Elworthii is crested throughout, is a 
vigorous grower and a handsome plant. A. F.-f. 
pulcherrimum is, as its Latin name implies, ‘‘very 
beautiful.” It is finely cut and delicately sub¬ 
divided. There are many more varieties of this 
species, all more or less interesting, but perhaps the 
most extraordinary is A. F.-f. Victoriae. This was 
found growing wild in Scotland, and is in its way 
the most wonderful caprice of Nature that has ever 
been recorded. No one unacquainted with the 
evolution of Ferns would ever recognise this as a 
sport from the true type, for it is of a totally 
different appearance, and looks like a series of 
tasselled crosses radiating from the main rachis. 
The fronds are narrow and slender-looking ; hence it 
possesses quite a unique character and is quite dis¬ 
similar to any other Fern. Unfortunately it is 
deciduous, so that I cannot show you a living speci¬ 
men. 
The rock Ferns included in this genus that I may 
only mention are Asplenium marinum, the Sea 
Spleenwort, which is a handsome plant and possesses 
glossy green fronds; the A. ceterach, or Scaly 
Spleenwort, which frequents the sunny sides of old 
walls ; the A. adiantum-nigrum, or the black 
Maidenhair Spleenwort; and the A. trichomanes, a 
very pretty little Fern which thrives on old walls, 
and in the chinks of weathered stone. This is the 
common Spleenwort, but is nevertheless very beau¬ 
tiful. At Totnes, in South Devon, I obtained good 
plants, but it was at the expense of my pocket- 
knife. The Bladder Fern (Cystopteris fragilis) is 
very delicate and pretty, but its twice-divided fronds 
speedily turn brown and die away. It is also very 
brittle, and therefore its specific name is well 
applied. 
The Hard Fern (Lomaria Blechnum spicant) is of 
an ornamental character, inasmuch as it throws up 
two kinds of fronds—fertile and barren. It will 
grow in almost any sort of soil, but lime must be 
avoided. It forms a pretty pot plant and grows 
luxuriantly if properly attended to, but hard water 
is certain death to it. It is evergreen, and has 
given us many striking varieties. 
The Male or Buckler Ferns (Nephrodium) are very 
generally distributed, and, as the name suggests, are 
somewhat coarse and robust in habit. In gardens 
the Male Fern is known as Lastrea Filix-mas, the 
common name being an exact interpretation of the 
Latin one. It will thrive in any situation short of 
one, which receives the meridian rays of the sun. 
There are, however, two forms of this plant, the 
evergreen and the deciduous. The former is styled 
the False or Hard Male Fern (N. pseudo-mas), and 
the latter the Soft Male Fern. Both are rampant 
growers, and well suited to the out-door rockery. 
A very handsome crested variety of the Hard Fern 
is called N. pseudo-mas Cristata. The Broad Buckler 
Fern (N. dilatata), and the Hay-scented Fern (N. 
jEmula) are both species well worth growing. N. 
Filix-mas is very prolific in varieties, and Dr. Lowe, 
in “ Our Native Ferns,” has described and figured 
no less than seventy of these variations. The Royal 
Fern (Osmunda regalis) must be mentioned, for it is 
peculiar in one respect—it produces its spore-capsules 
in the form of a spike. Hence, as above stated, it is 
sometimes called the ‘‘ Flow'ering ” Fern. Moisture 
is a sine qua non with this Fern, as, at its best, it is 
only to be seen in association with water. It grows 
most luxuriantly in Devonshire, and recently I 
witnessed its regal beauty on the banks of the lovely 
river Dart. 
The Polypodies, or Many-footed Ferns (Poly¬ 
podium) come next. All are interesting, but tempus 
fugit, therefore I can only breathe a few words about 
them. The Oak and the Beech Fern are both Poly¬ 
podies, as, indeed, are all our native Ferns, for 
technically they are all members of the great order 
Polypodiaceae. There are, however, many anoma¬ 
lies in our classifications which I do not pretend to 
understand. Dame Nature frequently departs from 
the fixed rules of our scientists, hence the reason 
why our doctors differ. But the Ferns remain to cheer 
and interest us ; and the very variations which cause 
so much debate in the learned world are just the 
qualities which render them so charming. 
The Oak and the Beech Fern are deciduous, while the 
common Polypody (Polypodium vulgare) is distinctly 
evergreen. It is a true many-footed Fern, and elects 
to stand on old tree trunks, mouldering walls, and the 
debris which collects on leafy banks. It has pro¬ 
duced some very beautiful varieties, one of which 
was detected in a very small state, growing in a 
chink of a granite rock, from whence it could not be 
removed; the rock weighed some cwts., but 
fortunately was loose. The finder rolled the rock 
some miles across country, got it home, and eventu¬ 
ally induced the plant, which has a creeping root, to 
grow out of the chink, and permit itself to be mul¬ 
tiplied ! Now I call that enthusiastic enthusiasm, 
which would surmount any difficulty. Mr. Druery 
is the author of this little episode. The Welsh 
Polypody (Polypodium vulgare Cambricum) is the 
only departure from the common type that I am 
practically acquainted with, but as it is a fine repre¬ 
sentative of the class to which it belongs, it will not 
be necessary to speak here of other varieties. 
Sufficient to say that it is a true plumose form of the 
species, and is always barren. Its habitat will in¬ 
dicate its mode of culture. 
The last, though not the least, on my list is the 
Harts-tongue (Scolopendrium vulgare). It cannot be 
confounded with any other British species, for, as 
its name implies, it is ribbon-like or tongue-shaped. 
It will grow anywhere—even in the sunshine. I 
have seen it at great elevations, stunted and dwarf, 
and revelling in loose vegetable mould in sheltered 
hollows in rank luxuriance. Recently I saw it in 
the lanes about Cockington, near Torquay, in great 
profusion, but it was limp and unlovely, for its 
erstwhile green fronds were hanging listlessly over 
the parched-up banks literally dying for want of 
water. I felt quite sympathetic, and was thankful 
that my sense of hearing was not sufficiently acute 
to enable me to detect the sounds of distress which 
I am quite certain were going forth. Water is 
synonymous with life in the animal and vegetable 
worlds ; bence the absence of it must produce the 
most disastrous results. From philosophy to facts 
is not necessarily a great way; let me, therefore, 
conclude by referring to two or three varieties of 
this marvellously prolific Fern, which, although so 
simple in general outline, has yet yielded so many 
extraordinary variations. The crisped form (S. v. 
crispum) is very interesting, because this again has 
developed other forms yet more wonderful. The 
wild finds have been many ; but it has not been my 
lot to find any. Therefore, rather than be without 
them, I have resorted to other means to obtain 
them. I must, however, mention one superb plant 
of this variety which I came across in Devonshire 
during my Fern rambles; but I regret to add that 
it was less unsophisticated than my heart could wish, 
for it was growing, not in its native wilds, bat sweetly 
and securely in the little front parlour of a rustic 
cottage. Sophistry could not effect a purchase, 
urbanity’s artful aid was no more successful, so 
admiration stepped in and carried off the prize—in 
memory. Those who know the frilled form will be 
better able to conceive the appearance of the fringed- 
frilled one (S. v. crispum fimbriatum), for in this 
variety the frills are themselves beautifully fringed. 
I had an opportunity of seeing this magnificent 
plant at the late show held in the Agricultural Hall, 
and I don’t think I ever admired a Fern more. S. v. 
multifidum is very pretty and has spreading, flat, 
divided crests, while S. v. glomeratum and its 
varieties are split up into so many segments, tufts, 
