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frond like an opened door, after the growth of the spore-
cases has disrupted its anterior margin, and eventually is
quite turned hack.
A t h y e ium E i l ix -fcemina, Roth. — The Lady Eern.
(Plate XI.)
The Lady Eern, on account of the exquisite grace of its
habit of growth, the elegance of its form, and the delicacy
of its hue, claims precedence over every other British species;
and this is more or less true of every one of its variable conditions.
The habit of the plant is tufted, the caudex of the
larger varieties often with age acquiring some length, and
elevating the circlet of fronds on a low, rude pedestal; this
stem, however, never acquires more than a few inches in
length. In winter, the summit of this stem, whetlier a tuft
seated close to the ground, or elevated a few inches above
the surface, is occupied by a mass of incipient fronds, each
rolled up separately, and nestling in a bed of chaffy scales.
About May these fronds become developed, and from the
strong old roots a score or upwards are usually produced;
they reach maturity early in the summer, during which time
a few additional fronds are generally developed from the
centre; and the whole of them are destroyed by the autumn
frosts under ordinary circumstances. The form of the fronds
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