Abstract
THAT Mr. Smith's “Ferns, British and Foreign” should have reached a new edition in a comparatively short time is no small tribute to its value as a book of reference for amateurs and fern cultivators. The chief portion of this very neatly got up work is occupied by an enumeration of cultivated ferns. The different genera, as understood by the author, who was one of the foremost pteridologists of his day, are described and figured, while a list of the cultivated forms, with synonyms and range of geographical distribution, follow under each genus, no attempt being made to give a diagnosis of the species. The scope of the work is therefore entirely different from that of the “Synopsis Filicum” of Hooker and Baker. The classification adopted is that propounded by Mr. Smith in his early publication on ferns, an arrangement not much used by modern writers. An appendix of recently-introduced ferns is given. These have been collected and arranged under their respective genera and tribes, as their names have from time to time been noticed in the horticultural journals and in nurserymen's catalogues. The list has thus no pretensions to be a critical one. The most interesting part of the book is the history of the introduction of exotic ferns, a subject about which, probably, no man living knows more than Mr. Smith. This is followed by an explanation of terms used in describing ferns, perhaps the least satisfactory part of the whole volume, as many of the terms are more or less obsolete, or only used in the book now before us. In this section nothing is said about the recent researches into the nature of the prothallus, construction of the reproductive organs, and morphological nature of the sporangia. The last part of the work is occupied by an essay on the cultivation of ferns, reprinted without alteration from the first edition, but giving the results of long experience of the successful cultivation of all groups of ferns. As a work of reference and guide to the cultivation, this book will most undoubtedly be of great service to the fern-growing public.
Ferns, British and Foreign. The History, Organography, Classification, and Enumeration of the Species of Garden Ferns, with a Treatise on their Cultivation.
By John Smith, Ex-Curator of the Royal Gardens, Kew. New and Enlarged Edition. (London: Hardwicke and Bogue, 1877.)
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[Book Reviews]. Nature 17, 43 (1877). https://doi.org/10.1038/017043b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/017043b0