3 6 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
January, 1913 
mijm 
Cristata, one of the many varietal forms of 
Pteris, is suitable for made-up dishes 
The Boston ferns are forms of the old sword 
type. This is N. cardata 
P. Cretica albo-lineaia has a whitish central 
band extremely decorative 
Scott fern ( N . Giatrasii). A new 
type of the Boston, which retains its 
beautiful drooping habit, and having 
the additional charm of undulated 
pinnae, giving a general wavy effect, 
is found in President Roosevelt. 
Even more beautiful than these 
ferns are the crested sorts of the 
sword fern. Elegantissima was one 
of the first of these, and proved very 
popular; but one great objection was 
that it showed a tendency to revert to 
the Boston type, and although this 
habit has been largely overcome in 
the improved form, still Whitman’s is 
now generally considered the most de¬ 
sirable of the Ostrich Plume ferns for 
use in the house, where long, graceful 
fronds are desired. It is truly a most 
beautiful fern, while the sword-like 
appearance of the fronds is retained, 
and they rise from a densely crested 
mass of shorter growths, making the effect of the whole both 
novel and charming. Scholzeli, the plumed Scott fern, stands in 
the same relation to the 
Whitmani as the Scott f-kp-v-vv 
does to the Boston — 
shorter fronds, more 
dense and compact 
growth; it is the ideal 
plumed small fern. The 
most delicate of all the 
Nephrolepis class is the 
Lace fern (N. Amer- 
pholii). It is very dis¬ 
tinct from the other 
sorts, and well worth a 
place in every collection. 
There are two other 
markedly different vari¬ 
eties. One of these is 
the Piersohii, an extra 
fine sort, which may be 
placed as halfway be¬ 
tween the Boston and 
the plumed type. Some idea of the merit of this fern may be 
gained from the fact that it was awarded a gold medal by the 
Society of American Florists. The other is the Fluffy Ruffles 
fern (N. superbissima ) . This is so odd and distinct as to be 
really in a class by itself, the fronds being very irregular and 
Various styles of copper receptacles look well with 
Boston ferns 
The maidenhair family of ferns offers great diversity of form. At the left is one of 
the coarser varieties, while at the right is a common lace-like variety 
dense in growth, and the color an 
extra deep green. Neither of these, 
however, will stand as unfavorable 
conditions as most of the others men¬ 
tioned. 
One of the beautiful but delicate 
adiantums, perhaps the one most fre¬ 
quently seen, is the A. Farleyense. 
But outside of the greenhouse or flor¬ 
ist's it is not to be relied on. None of 
the maidenhairs, in fact, is as suited 
to house culture as the Nephrolepis 
type. There are, however, two splen¬ 
did varieties that with reasonable care 
will do well and repay amply the at¬ 
tention given them. They are Crozv- 
eanum, with fronds much firmer 
than those of its type, and the hardiest 
for growing in the house ; and a splen¬ 
did new sort called the Glory fern 
(Glory of Mordrecht), which is al¬ 
most identical with Farleyense in ap¬ 
pearance, but much more easily grown. As yet this variety is 
rather high in price, four-inch pots costing one dollar each, but 
it will undoubtedly be¬ 
come cheaper and prove 
very popular. 
The name given the 
Pteris ferns is descrip¬ 
tive of only part of them, 
as they vary greatly. 
They are commonly used 
in made-up dishes or 
with other plants, but 
many of them make fine 
single plants as well. 
Wilsonii is a popular 
sort, making a compact 
plant of clear light green 
foliage, uniquely tufted. 
Cretica is dark green, or 
green with white lines, 
according to the variety. 
Victoria is the best of 
the variegated sorts. A 
very rare sort is Childsii, with fronds of large size, and the leaf¬ 
lets deeply cut and also undulated. 
A pan of spider ferns, with a small palm, such as Cocos Wcd- 
delliana, or a small growing fern such as Giatrasii in the center, 
(Continued on page 57) 
