The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1907-05-22
and doubt very much if they occur so
far south (Orange county,.

and doubt very much If they occur sc
far south (Orange county,.
I conclude the list of Our native
Florida Ferns with two Of our mos
beautiful and striking species, bot1
from the American tropics, fndine
their northern Limit within the border
of Our state-Goniopteris reptans an
G. tetragona, large growing and nobl
! species, forming very elegant AM
graceful tufts wherever found. Tn,
| first one abounds among calcareou
rocks in middle and southern Florida
while the second one is common il
rocky woods in Marion county. Botl
are easily cultivated into fine and con
splcuouS specimen plants. Othe
tropical species now cultivated in ou1
gardens may escape from cultivation
and in time become naturalized in this
humid, mild and equable climate.
Our moist, rich hammock woods are
excellent places for naturalizing exotic
Ferns. Mr.. Theodore Mead has ex-
perlmented largely with these anc
other plants on his fine place at Lake
Charm, IN years gone by. His name
will never vanish from the list O.
understanding horticulturists of Florida
with ?. w. Reasoner, H. E. Hart, w
c. Steele, he has done more than any-
body else in the promotion of Florida
and in making her possibilities known
to the world. Mr.. Mead acclimatized
quite a number Of tropical Ferns
among them the stately Pteris mar
glnata from the Ma1ayan Archipelago
Plants six to eight feet Ugh with an
equal spread of the glossy deep green
tronds, were quite common in his
hammock woods, previous to the freeze
IN 1913 In that year all were killed
outright, but fortunately another one
OF our famous horticulturists, Mr.. E.
N. Reasoner, OF Oneco, Fla, had taken
an interest in this tropical giant among
Ferns and had propagated it largely.
In this way it was saved from becom-
Ing lost to Florida horticulture. I have
two most exquisite specimen plants OF
this Fern in my collection, growing
among Caladiuns, Marantas, etc.
For naturalizing in our rich ham,
mock woods and in half shady places
around our lakes, the following Ferns
are particularly to be recommended:
C1bot1um Barometz, a very beautiful
species from Assam and Indo-China ;
'Cyrtonlum falcatum, c. Fortunei,
D1ctyagramma japonica, Onychium
japonicum, Polystichium setosum-all
from Japan and China; Nephrodium
hlrtlpes, a native of the Himalayas:
Dryopteris Maxonii and Cheilanthes
Kaulf11ssii, both large growing and
noble Ferns from Mexico and very
rare, yet, carefully attended to and kept
clean from weeds, they will form
striking specimen plants.
For plant in moist localities.
| can recommend the following marvel
lous Adiantums or Maidenhairs:
Adlantum hispidulum from the Old
World tropics; A. hybridum; A. for
mosum from Australia; A. tenerum and
A. 'Capi1lus-Veneris; A. rhomboideum
from South America; A. cuneatum
from Brazil; A. fulvum from New Zea-
land; A. lunulatum from Hongkong; "A.
caudatum from the tropics everywhere;
A. curvatum from tropical America:
A. Ferguson from Cey1on: A. assimile
from Australia; A. p11verulentum from
the West Indies; A. macrop1yllum
from Tropical America; A. bellum
from Bermuda; A. amabile from Mexi-
co; A. Aethiopicum from Spain.
The Sword Ferns or lNephro1epis
Species. are the next of importance.
lhey all thrive like natives in Florida
and soon form exquisite specimen
plants, crowdlng out by their over ex-
uberant runners, the more delicate
species if not checked in time OF the
so-called Boston Ferns, the following
are particularly fine. Nenhro1an;e ~