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Perennial
Fern Home Page
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Ferns have been with us for more than 300
million years and in that time the diversification
of their form has been phenomenal. Ferns
grow in many different habitats around the
world. The ferns were at their height during
the Carboniferous Period (the age of ferns)
as they were the dominant part of the vegetation
at that time. During this era some fern
like groups actually evolved seeds (the
seed ferns) making up perhaps half of the
fern like foliage in Carboniferous forests
and much later giving rise to the flowering
plants. Most of the ferns of the Carboniferous
became extinct but some later evolved into
our modern ferns. There are about 12,000
species in the world today.
Ferns and fern-allies are more complicated
in structure than most people would suspect.
Their structures, though similar in some
ways to those of flowering plants are different
enough to warrant a distinctive terminology.
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The frond is the part of the fern that
we see as we wander through the woods it
is the "leaf" of a fern. It is
divided into two main parts, the stipe (leaf
stalk or petiole) and the blade (the leafy
expanded portion of the frond).
The blade may be undivided to finely cut,
each degree of division having a specific
term. "Pinnate" blades are divided
into leaflets (pinnae), with each leaflet
narrowly attached to the central stem (called
the rachis in this leafy part of the frond).
Blades more divided are designated as bipinnate
or even tripinnate with some divided four
or five times. The ultimate division are
called pinnules. Another type of division
is one where the green leafy tissue isn't
completely separated from the rachis but
rather it spreads along the rachis, instead
this degree of division is called "pinnatifid".
Fronds vary greatly in size, from tree
ferns with 12 foot fronds to the mosquito
ferns with fronds only 1/16 of an inch long.
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Some of our Favorite Ferns:
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Christmans
Fern
Graceful evergreen ferns, used by settlers
for Christmas decorations, are also superb
in borders and foundation plantings. Grow
24-36" tall and wide.Bring elegance to
any shady spot all summer long. Ferns thrive
in places where nothing else will grow and
bring the beauty of forest glens to your landscape.
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Japanese
Painted Fern
Ferns create visions of cool, peaceful places.
This Japanese variety evokes the shady tranquility
of its native Oriental gardens.Lovely clumps
12-20" high with a spread of up to 36"
have a weeping habit and exquisite foliage
that appears "painted" with silver.
Japanese Painted Fern are ideal for a shady
niche in a rock garden.
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Lady
Fern
Versatile, carefree. Fills shady, moist areas
where other plants fail. Lacy fronts up to
30" long and 12-24" wide. Superb
in cutting.Bring elegance to any shady spot
all summer long. Ferns thrive in places where
nothing else will grow and bring the beauty
of forest glens to your landscape.
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Ostrich
Plume Fern
Graceful fronds reach 24-36" long and
18" wide. A popular choice for shady
areas near foundations and walls. Fine greenery.
Bring elegance to any shady spot all summer
long. Ferns thrive in places where nothing
else will grow and bring the beauty of forest
glens to your landscape.
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How to Successfully Grow Ferns:
1) You will need a clear plastic container like
the ones supermarkets use for cakes or cupcakes.
This will ensure high humidity.
2) The potting soil must be good quality not
a generic brand. This very important.
3) After putting the soil in the container dampen
it. It should feel like the humus soil you would
feel in an oak forest. Not too damp not too dry.
To kill bacteria and fungal spores place the container
in a microwave oven and heat for 3-5 minutes (until
it is steaming pretty good). Be careful, too long
and the container will begin to melt. Then let
the soil cool for about an hour.
4) Sprinkle the spores on top of the soil , just
enough so that you can see some of the powdery
spores wafting down and put the container near
a window. Up close for a north facing window,
back a foot or so for south facing window (reverse
this in the Southern Hemisphere).
5) Wait. It will be 6-8 weeks until you see anything.
Then you will see small flat leaflike plants,
"prothallia" that will grow to about
3/8 inches across. If there are a lot growing
close together they must be thinned out to about
1 or 2 per 3" area. If not they will only
grow male organs. During this time make sure the
potting soil in the container does not dry out..
You should check the soil every week or so.
6) When the Prothallia get to 3/8" it will
grow male and female organs. The male organ will
make sperm which will swim to the female part
and fertilize the egg. The egg will then grow
into the fern plant that we see, called the "Sporophyte".
During this time the prothallia should be sprinkled
with water so that the sperm will be able to swim
to the egg.
7) After another 6-8 weeks you will see little
ferns come up; the first frond will be about 1/2"
tall. Thin them out so they are about 3"
apart.
8) In the spring give them a long time to adjust
to the dry outside air by opening the top of your
container a little bit each day. The open time
should increase more and more for two weeks. If
they look bad, close it up again until they recover,
then try again. This is where I lose the most
ferns; they have a hard time adjusting.
9) Plant ferns in a mostly shady spot, but not
too shady. They are very fussy so keep an eye
on them quite frequently for the first year.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pteridophyta
Classes
Marattiopsida
Osmundopsida
Gleicheniopsida
Pteridopsida
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