| Where the garden meets the wild | |||
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FERNS |
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| Adiantum aleuticum, Polystichum munitum and Dryopteris expansa in our garden. Photograph © Paige Woodward. | |||
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We love ferns, in pots and in the garden. Our selection grows with our passion. Ferns can make a garden on their own. They have been going strong since long before flowers or, of course, people. We rejoice in them now for their endurance, their elegance, and for how easy it is to grow them. We thank John Dove for sharing his wonderful images of Woodwardia fimbriata on Texada Island. We also thank Rosi Möller for lending us fern images in the past. Fern Resources
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Photograph © Pat Woodward
Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Adiantum
aleuticum (Ruprecht) C.A. Paris. Pteridaceae / Adiantaceae (Pteris
family / Adiantum family). Western maidenhair fern.
Western five-finger fern. Native
to W North America; the name Adiantum pedatum is now reserved for
plants farther east. Deciduous, with handlike, feathery blue-green fronds on
shiny black-maroon stipes. Very satisfactory for slopes, and by streams
and waterfalls in dappled shade. 20-year-old clumps may be 1.2 m
(4') wide ~ inexpressibly beautiful. Likes rich but gravelly soil;
welcomes some calcium; also found on serpentine soils. Our spores are from Chilliwack Mountain. Height to 50 cm (20"). Zone 3. Award
of Garden Merit (Royal Horticultural Society) 1997. Great
Plant Pick (plants for the Pacific Northwest) 2004.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Adiantum aleuticum
(Ruprecht) C.A. Paris, syn. Adiantum pedatum subsp. subpumilum
(W.H. Wagner) Lellinger. Pteridaceae / Adiantaceae (Pteris
family / Adiantum family). Dwarf
western maidenhair. Sometimes sold as forma imbricatum
or a cultivar, 'Imbricatum'. Most details as above. Our ferns are grown from spores
that descend from material collected on the west coast of
Vancouver Island. Height to 15 cm (6"). Zone not certain; thrives
with us in Zone 6. Award of Garden
Merit (Royal Horticultural Society) 1997 (as A. aleuticum 'Subpumilum').
Pot 10 cm (4") $10.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward
Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Asplenium trichomanes
L. Aspleniaceae (Spleenwort family). Maidenhair spleenwort. A small, tidy, very hardy evergreen fern with
opposite, once-pinnate fronds and wiry dark brown rachises. Native
to every continent.
Prefers moist, temperate, shady, calcium-rich rock crevices. The lushest,
longest-lived examples in our garden are on a steep, north-facing slope.
Wondering about pronunciation? William Stearn says "trichoMANes"
in his Dictionary of Plant Names for Gardeners. Our ferns
are grown from spores collected in SW British Columbia and
elsewhere. Height
15 cm (6"). Zone 3. Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Athyrium filix-femina
(L.) Roth var. cyclosorum Ruprecht. Dryopteridaceae (Wood
fern family). Northwestern lady fern.
A tall, airy, voluptuous, deciduous fern ~ click on our picture ~ that is also
tough, the first spring green in many a landscape. A good foil for spring bulbs, since
it rises quickly to mask their tired leaves. When Lady fern gets tired in turn, in
late summer, tear the fronds up into mulch. Tolerates many soils but does best
partly shaded. Native
to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. Our spores are from Chilliwack
Mountain. Height 50-150 cm
(20-60"). Zone 4. Award of Garden
Merit (Royal Horticultural Society) 1993.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Athyrium filix-femina
(L.) Roth var. filix-femina 'Frizelliae'. Dryopteridaceae
(Wood fern family). Tatting fern. This
is a selection from the Lady fern of Europe; a Mrs. Frizell of County
Wicklow, Ireland, near Dublin, discovered it in her garden in 1857.
Tatting ~ hand-knotted lace composed of rings and arched chains ~ was
popular at the time, and does resemble this fern's dainty, linear fronds
with pinnae reduced to tight fans
along the rachis. Height 10-30 cm (4-12"). Zone 3-4. Award
of Garden Merit (Royal Horticultural Society) 1993. Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Athyrium filix-femina
(L.) Roth var. filix-femina 'Victoriae'. Dryopteridaceae
(Wood fern family). This is the slenderest, most elongated crested fern we
know. The plentiful fronds are 40-60 cm (16-24") long; the pinnae
tend
to cross over each other, forming a lattice. Everyone who sees this
decidiuous fern is fascinated. Our photograph robs it of elegance. Plant it in part-day shade, high on a
moist, fairly steep slope to give its fronds a graceful arc. Zone 3-4.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Athyrium
otophorum (Miquel) Koidzumi var. okanum Kurata.
Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Eared
fern. This very handsome deciduous fern has triangular fronds that are twice-pinnate.
The linear structure is red to maroon and the new fronds have a maroon
cast. As you can see in our upper photograph, we could not resist trying
it out with companion plants that have richly colored foliage. Native to Japan, the
Korean Peninsula, and China. Height 45 cm (18"). Zone 4-5. Award
of Garden Merit (Royal Horticultural Society) 1993. Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Dorrie Woodward |
Blechnum spicant (L.) Smith.
Blechnaceae (Blechnum family). Deer fern. This is a shapely fern with two kinds of once-pinnate, narrow
leaves. The leathery basal
fronds are evergreen; the fertile fronds, held upright, are deciduous.
Likes damp slopes, crevices, soil on the acid side and part shade. Native from Alaska to
California; and to Iceland and Eurasia. Our plants are from Pacific
Northwest spores. Some were salvaged on northern Vancouver Island as part
of a non-timber forest products pilot project supervised by Royal Roads
University. Height to 30 cm (12"). Zone 6. Great
Plant Pick (plants for the Pacific Northwest) 2004.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00 |
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| Botrychium
ternatum (Thunb.) Sw. Ophioglossaceae
(Grape fern family). Grape fern. フユノハナワラビ
Huyunohanawarabi (Japanese).
This cosmopolitan treasure has long been grown in pots by Japanese
connoisseurs.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Cheilanthes
argentea
(S.G. Gmelin) Kunze. Silverback fern. Pteridaceae (Pteris
family). This small fern presents pentagonal blades on wiry purple stipes.
The front of the blade is dark green; it is the reverse, a powdery
cream-white, that is special. Native to E Asia, India and
Malaysia. Grow this beauty in full sun, in a porous, sandy mix that does
not dry out. Zone 5.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Cryptogramma acrostichoides
R.
Brown. Pteridaceae (Pteris family). Parsley fern. Rock brake. Mountain parsley.
A very hardy,
frothy-looking, practically evergreen fern of rock crevices and talus
slopes. Tolerates summer drought. The parsley-like sterile fronds stay
green all winter, then die back to make way for fresh growth. The
deciduous fertile fronds are upright, with narrow, rolled pinnae. Native
to west-central North America and Asia. Formerly considered part of the
European Cryptogramma crispa, but, in addition to other
differences, at 2n = 60, C. acrostichoides has only half as many
chromosomes. Our plants are divisions of ferns rescued from a blasting site near
Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island. Zone 2.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Cyrtomium falcatum (Linnaeus f.) C. Presl. House holly fern. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Dark green, shiny, leathery fronds with holly-like leaflets make this an outstanding garden fern. Evergreen in frost-free areas. Native to India, China and Japan. Height about 30 cm (12"). Usually called Zone 7. With us in Zone 6 it is semi-deciduous; we cut off the surviving fronds in early spring and are rewarded with strong, shiny new ones. Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Cyrtomium
fortunei J. Smith var. clivicola (Makino)
Tagawa. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). This treasure has leathery, evergreen leaves
that are matte the upper surface. Clivicola means "hill-dwelling" and this fern
is a natural for sloping half-shade in moist to quite dry
conditions. Native to China and Japan. Our founding stock was received from the Hardy Fern Foundation. Height about 30 cm
(12"). Zone 5-6.
Pot 10 cm (4") $10.00 |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Dryopteris
erythrosora
(D.C. Eaton) O. Kuntze
forma prolifica. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family).
Japanese autumn fern. Forma prolifica is a smaller, finer,
more linear version of the
big, triangular evergreen fern long favored for its color. The fronds are
twice-pinnate. They emerge copper-pink; as they green up and mature, new
coppery fronds keep emerging, producing delightful contrasts. On the
underside of mature fronds, rows of round, scarlet dots have the
charm of a Japanese obi brocade. These are indusia, or covers, of the
spore-containing sori. Height 38 cm (15"). Zone 5-6. Great
Plant Pick (plants for the Pacific Northwest) 2004.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Dryopteris expansa (C. Presl)
Fraser-Jenkins & Jermy. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Spiny wood fern.
This is a hardy deciduous fern of cool, moist woods from sea level to
the subalpine. Ideal for streamsides. Likes to colonize conifer stumps.
The fronds, 1 m (3') tall, are thrice-pinnate; the lowest pair of leaflets
is triangular. Circumboreal. Our spores are from Chilliwack and Sumas mountains in southwestern British Columbia. Zone 4.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Dryopteris
filix-mas
(Linnaeus) Schott 'Linearis Polydactyla'. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family).
Slender crested male fern. This deciduous fern is native around the
temperate northern hemisphere. Our selection has stiff, leathery,
linear, crested blades that overlap, producing a lacy effect. Height 30 -50
cm (12-20"). Zone 4-5.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00
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Photograph © Pat Woodward
Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Gymnocarpium disjunctum
(Ruprecht)
Ching. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Western oak fern. Formerly
considered part of Gymnocarpium dryopteris; however, among
other things, G. disjunctum is diploid and G. dryopteris is
tetraploid. Ours is a small, deciduous, hardy, creeping fern with
delicate triangular fronds. Adapted to deciduous woods that are sunny in
early spring, well shaded by summer. Makes an excellent groundcover for
spring bulbs. Native to eastern Asia and western North America. Our
plants are divisions of Fraser Valley stock. Height 15 cm
(6"). Zone 4.
Pot 10 cm (4") $5.00 |
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Photographs © Pat Woodward |
Matteuccia struthiopteris (L.)
Todaro var. pensylvanica (Willdenow) C.V. Morton.
Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Ostrich fern.
A tall, very hardy fern, deservedly popular in gardens. The tightly
rolled young basal fronds, or fiddleheads, are a spring delicacy; the
fiddleheads are the official state vegetable of Vermont, according to the Flora
of North America. In our
first photo ~
please click on it ~ the fronds are just past the eating stage. Later, as
in our second photo, they become huge "feathers." These die down in late fall,
leaving behind smaller fertile fronds that last till they shed their
spores in spring. Native to temperate Canada and E United States. Our plants are garden
divisions of British Columbia stock. Height to 1.75 m (5.5'). Zone 2.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00 |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Osmunda regalis
Linnaeus var.
regalis 'Purpurascens'. Osmundaceae
(Cinnamon fern family). Royal fern, Flowering fern. Deciduous
and very hardy, this beautiful twice-pinnate fern has purple stipes and
pinkish new growth. Native to Europe and Asia. Very vigorous. We
have interplanted this fern with some of our Colchicum
species; the Colchicum leaves die down by summer, as the fern comes
into its own. In autumn, the Colchicum bloom among the fronds,
echoing their purple tones, then both fade away. Height about 30 cm (12"). Zone 2-3.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Pentagramma triangularis subsp. triangularis (Kaulfuss) Yatskievych, Windham & E. Wollenweber. Pteridaceae (Pteris family). Goldback fern. A small, uncommon fern with triangular fronds that are gold-powdered on the underside. Adapted to part shade and dry, rocky slopes and crevices. Come drought, the fronds curl up; come dew or rain, they're open and green in no time. In rainy areas, plant in lean, well aerated soil, sheltered by overhanging rocks. Formerly called Pityrogramma triangularis. Native from SW British Columbia to California. Our mother spores came from Thetis Island, BC. Height 15 cm (6"). Zone 6. | ||
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Polypodium glycyrrhiza
D.C. Eaton. Polypodiaceae (Polypody family). Licorice fern.
A small, evergreen fern with down-curving,
once-pinnate fronds that grows on damp, shaded rocks, stumps and trees at
low elevations, especially in N light. Beautiful in a
rock wall. The rhizomes taste of licorice. Summer-dormant
where rainfall is low. Native from Kamchatka to coastal Alaska and
California. Our plants are divisions, usually of ferns rescued in 1999 from the bulldozers
on Sumas Mountain in SW British Columbia. Height 13-30 cm
(5-12"). Zone 6.
Pot 10 cm (4") $5.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Polystichum
braunii (Spenner) Fée. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Braun's
holly fern, Prickly shield fern. This beauty has substantial,
matte, evergreen
fronds with twice-pinnate, bristly blades and scaly stipes and
rachises. Native to N America, Europe and Asia. Height about 25 cm
(10"). Zone 3-4.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Polystichum munitum
(Kaulfuss) C. Presl. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Western sword fern. A tall, evergreen
fern, the soul of the West Coast rainforest. Russet fiddleheads become dark green, arching, leathery
fronds with eared pinnules. Elegant as an accent plant, stunning massed.
Full sun to shade. Tolerates many soils, but does best on cool, moist
slopes in dappled light. Native to much of western North America. Our spores are from Chilliwack
Mountain. Height to 120 cm (58"). Zone 5.
Pot 15 cm (6") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Polystichum
polyblepharum (J. Roemer ex Kunze) C. Presl. Dryopteridaceae (Wood fern family). Japanese
sword fern. Dark green, shiny, evergreen fronds with eared
pinnules. Scaly stipes and rachises. Beautiful and easy. Native to E
China, the Korean Peninsula and Japan. Height about 50 cm (20"). Zone
5-6.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Polystichum
setiferum
(Forsskål) T. Moore ex Woynar
'Congestum'. Dryopteridaceae
(Wood fern family). Dwarf soft shield
fern. We received this dark green, "scrunched up"
little evergreen fern as the cultivar 'Plumosum,' and have offered it
under that name in the past, but it is clearly 'Congestum.' It is
very popular among rock gardeners. Height about 8 cm (3"). Zone 6,
perhaps colder.
Pot 10 cm (4") $8.00 |
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Photographs © John Dove
Photograph by Brother Alfred Brousseau, © St. Mary's College of California |
Woodwardia fimbriata
J. E. Smith ex Rees. Blechnaceae (Blechnum family). Giant chain
fern. Very tall deciduous fern. Prefers year-round moisture and
part shade in conifer forests, recent clearcuts, seeps and roadside
ditches. The fronds may be copper-pink when young. When mature they are
occasionally 2.75 m (9') long, often 1-2 m (3-6') long and of course much
shorter in dry areas. In our picture at top left, taken on Texada Island in British Columbia, the fronds are almost 2 m long. The sori
(bottom picture at
left) are in two "chains" on either side of the midrib.
Native from BC south to California, Nevada and Arizona. In
BC, found only on SE Vancouver Island and adjacent Lasqueti and
Texada islands. Zone 7 (but we are growing it in Zone 6).
Pot 12 cm (4.5") $8.00 |
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| This page was updated Sept. 28, 2006 | |||
