Asp len ium aculuiii,
“ virg llii,
“ produetum.
Taraehia adiaiitum-mgrum.
“ obtusa,
“ acuta,
B o u t . W’i l l d e s o i t . R e w s ia n .
S a d i .e e . P e e .s l . F e e .
B o e y .
Lowe.
P e e s l .
P e e s l .
P r e s l ,
Asgdeniiim—Sploenwort. Adia n tum-n ig rum—Black adiantum.
I x THE Section A d i .vxtuji-xigiium of Mooke; E tjasplexihm
OP F ee, axd E ut.a-aidrariíe of Smith.
I h e Black Sjjlceuwort, f Ai splenium adiantum-nigrurn,) is a
readily distinguished species, and being so common, is well
known by all Fern cultivators. It is a handsome Fern, which
flourishes well in the ojjeu Fernery, but seldom successfully
grown under pot culture.
It seems to have been introduced into the Eoyal Gardens,
Kew, in the year 1793.
A hardy British sjiecies. Evergreen.
Found all over Europe, being a native of France, Italy,
Spain, Portugal, Austria, Corsica, Cyprus, Sicily, Teneriffe,
Switzerland, Madeira, Azores, Algiers, Abyssinia, Cape of Good
Hope, St. Helena, Siberia, Eussia, Arabia, Armenia, Affghanistan,
Kashmir, Simla, Mussoorie, Jersey, Guernsey, Ireland, Scotland,
Wales, etc.
Some authors liave separated one or two of the varieties, and
placed them as distinct species, and of these the most distinct
is acutum, yet it is doubtful whether even this will prove to
be really distinct.
The form of the frond is triangularly elongate, the pinnæ
being obliquely triangular, and the pinnules ovate and toothed.
Bitripimiate.
Stipes of the same length as the frond. Caudex short, thick,
and tufted. Stipes ebeneous.
S on linear elongate, eventually becoming confluent.
Length of frond from three to twenty-two inches; colour rich
dark green.
Mr. Moore, in his “Nature-printed Ferns,” describes nine
varieties, viz.:—
1st.— Ohtusum, Willdenow. Found in Ireland.
2nd.— Ohlongum, Moore. From Guernsey.
3rd.— Variegatum, AVollaston.
4th.—Multifidum, AVollaston.
5th.— Fissum, AIoore.
6th.—Intermedium, Moore.
7th.— Oxyphyllum, Moore.
8th.—Decompositum, AIoore.
'dt\i.—Acutum, Bory. Ireland, Aladeira, etc.
Grows on rocks, and is very generally distributed throughout
Great Britain. Nowhere have I seen it more luxuriant than
on the sandstone rocks in the Nottingham Park.
It can be procured from any Nurseryman, if not to be obtained
in the immediate neighbourhood of the cultivator.
Aly thanks are due to Air. Sim, of Foot’s Cray, for plants
of the varieties acutum and ohtusum.
The illustration is from a plant in my own collection.