tie 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
August 22, 1903. 
so that the wind does not twist them off, deferring the filial 
trimming until most ot toe foliage has fallen. Autumn fruit¬ 
ing varieties should also be supported with string o>r wire, and 
as: soon as ripening of the fruit begins the nets must be put 
on, or the birds will quickly lessen the crop. 
Strawberries. — 1'fie late showery weather has been all in 
favour of layered runners,, quickly tilling their small pots with 
loots, and the sooner the plants are severed from thei mother 
plant and set out in' the quarters prepared for them the 
better. 11 oval Sovereign, no doubt the heaviest' cropper up ( to 
date, being a robust grower, should be given more space than 
other varieties, and where it is intended to let them stand 
for two- or three years they may either be set out 21? ft. 
apart each way, or half that distance for the first year, cutting 
out every other plant after the fruit has been cleared next 
summer. Water in the plants should the ground be any way 
dry at. the time of planting, and keep' all strings removed as 
fast as they appear, plying the flat hoe between them every 
opportunity. St. Joseph and St. Antoine de 1 Padoue, two good 
autumn fruiters, must, be securely netted as soon as the 
berries begin to colour. 
Apples. —The birds have already begun on such varieties 
as Lady Sudeley, Quarrenden, Kerry Pippin, and Keswick 
Codlin, therefore lose no time in protecting the fruit from 
these marauders, or the best of it will be ruined. Many of 
our espalier trees are crowded with fruit, and have been freely 
thinned, but the same cannot be said of the standard trees, 
which have_a thin crop, many of them. Such early varieties 
as Mr. Gladstone, Irish Peach, and .1 uneating must not be 
kept many days after taken from the trees, or the flavour will 
be impaired,; in fact, they are never better than, when eaten 
the same day ; that means, of course, must be ripe before they 
are gathered. 
Pears. —-Jargonelles are scarce this season, but where only 
a few individual fruits are scattered they may be covered with 
a small bag made of hexagon netting; and it is to be feared 
by recent reports that, this will be pretty general with most 
varieties, though we have a large tree of Williams as a standard 
carrying quite a heavy crop, while trees on walls present little 
beside leaves in many instances, not a mile away. 
Plums. - This is another fruit scarce in most localities, so 
the most should be made of the few that are to be found. 
Luckily we never had a better crop of old Greengage, and the 
thrushes and blackbirds are already sampling them, so 1,-in. 
mesh netting has been put over them as a protection, and it 
appears that this is the only way of saving a crop now the 
birds are so very numerous. 
Morello Cherries. —The fruits are about fit for bottling, 
also jam making, with us 1 , but the crop is very thin. This 
fruit will hang for some two months from this date in many 
localities when planted in a northern aspect, but here we 
cannot keep them after about the middle of September. In 
removing them from the trees a. knife or pair of scissors should 
be used, and too much care cannot be bestowed upon them 
when required for bottling, as they are so easily bruised when 
fully ripe, which they must be for this purpose. Naturally, 
the, finest fruit should be selected, and, above all, a dry day 
must be chosen for the job. James Mayne. 
Bicton, Devonshire. 
The Hardy Fern Garden. 
Although the weather conditions of the current season have 
seriously militated against many garden plants and crops, yet, 
as there is no evil in one direction without a corresponding set¬ 
off in another, it thus happens that the- subject of these remarks 
has immensely benefited by the cool weather and the copious 
rainfall. In town gardens, more especially, this is very notice¬ 
able. Normally, the Athyriums or Lady Ferns, for instance, 
at this season are usually one of glories faded and gone; for, 
although the species, and varieties of this, beautifuf Fern, are 
perfectly hardy in a radical sense, the aerial parts are not 
able to accommodate themselves to diying winds or droughty 
weather; hence the fronds—always fragile and succulent— 
soon succumb to these latter conditions, lose their colour and 
freshness, and consequently become rather mere memories than 
bright, useful, and verdant objects of the well-kept garden. 
This year, however, the season has been an ideal one for 
British Ferns, their growth, vigour, and general healthy 
appearance quite approximating to the; luxuriance of Nature 
at her best. But, beautiful as the species are in the glens, 
on the mountains, by the shady lane, in the spray of the 
cascade, or on the margin of the stream, the specialist only 
tolerates them for the finer forms which have resulted from 
them. The Fern lover, therefore, like his brother florist, would 
no more think of devoting his always limited area of garden 
ground to the culture of normal types than the latter would 
consent to grow only the original representatives of his Roses, 
his Carnations, or his Chrysanthemums 1 . This may not be 
Nature pure and simple, but it is good horticultural practice— 
a garden being a place set apart for the cultivation of spe¬ 
cialities, Moreover, there is no necessity to confine, oneself 
to> common fornqs, when varieties—numerous and beautiful— 
are to be had for the asking. 
In the genus Athyrium we have good, symmetrical, robust 
forms, as well as dwarf varieties. A. Filix-foemina cristatum 
is a handsome tasselled Fern which alone has a numerous 
progeny. These are all crested, tasselled, or sub-divided in 
various ways,, and each is sufficiently distinct to warrant a 
varietal name. 
On the other hand, there are elegant feathery forms known 
as plumosums, whose chief merits and distinguishing char¬ 
acteristics are their delicate cuttings and fine division. 
Here also there is much room for variation both as to frond 
appearance, and lace-like division ; some are superb in that 
direction, and one at least is quinquepinnate, or divided to the 
fifth degree, Yet, strange to say, this delicacy of cutting is 
well maintained even in the open border. 
The soft Shield Ferns (Polystichum angulare) and their 
varieties, are admirably adapted for outdoor culture. They 
are exceedingly robust of habit, and when well established 
make a, grand show winter or summer. The divisions of the 
pinnae are cut and carried out on the same lines as the Lady 
Ferns; in fact, they are more densely feathery, and, in many 
cases,, the divisions and sub-divisions are so minute and delicate 
that no exotic Fern (except, perhaps, Todea, superba, and that, 
is utterly impracticable for the outdoor fernery) can compare 
with them. The varieties of the soft Shield Fern, are profuse. 
Mr. Lowe, divides them into twenty-eight sections. Nearly 
all these are suitable for garden culture, and, given a con¬ 
genial compost and plenty of water, prodigious specimens may 
be assured. The Mate Fern (Lastrea Filix-mas), or, rather, its 1 
many tasselled forms, is sure to find a.'place in every rockery. 
L. F.-mas cristata is often called, and worthily, too,, the “ King” 
of the Male Ferns. 
Many fine varieties of Lastrea. exist, and are worth attention. 
Scolopendrium vulgare, or the Hart’s-tongue, is, easily recog¬ 
nisable as a species, but when some of its varieties—as has 
been shown recent!}'—are taken, into account, it requires an 
expert to detect their origin. However, it is not my intention 
in, these notes to specialise—a, visit to Kew will enable anyone 
to do that in a broad and distinctive manner. I merely desire 
to point out that the larger and more robust varieties are well 
adapted for town and suburban gardens. There are, however, 
two positions which should be avoided, viz., a full southern 
exposure and the dense shade of trees. 
Ferns, like most other plants, love light; it hardens their 
tissues;, enhances their colour, and renders them less sus¬ 
ceptible to weather fluctuations,. Ferns, too, like flowering 
plants, prefer a, good compost. Once,, however, the fernery is 
properly constructed, it will require little further attention 
beyond an annual top-dressing of leaf-soil or thoroughly de¬ 
cayed old hot-bed manure. One other proviso—copious supply 
of water, for it does not often barmen in southern districts 
that Nature comes to the rescue of British Ferns. 
Acton, W. C. B. Green. 
