This page repeats the information and links found in the alphabetical section, but just gathers all the ferns together on one page. The selection is currently rather limited compared to a few years ago... there are more sellable fern species around the nursery grounds but I just need to find the inspiration to get some potted! Someday...
last update January 2008
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(2 gallon pots, too large to ship), synonyms Onoclea germanica; Matteuccia pensylvanica; Pteretis pensylvanica... Common names: Ostrich (Plume) Fern; Shuttlecock Fern, Fiddlehead Fern. A tall perennial fern, hardy to zone 3. LOW MAINTENANCE. Of Arching habit, colonizing mainly by moderately creeping rootstocks. Vigorous, fast-growing and of very long lifespan. Height: to 2-5', and 3' wide. Native to Europe, W Asia, E Asia: China/ Japan, much of NAm in cooler climates. In NS it is more common in the north than in the middle or southern parts. Can reach 6' tall in some areas. Graceful and charming. Rhizomes short but once established produce long stolons by which it can spread rapidly. Recommended site: light shade. Soil: mildly acidic, largely organic, reliably moist but well-drained. Typically occurs in light shade on rocky stream banks, in rich moist soils like floodplain, sometimes on the edges of boggy areas. Full sun if in cool moist areas. May take more shade. May be okay in heavier (loam or even clay loam) soil. Leaves may turn yellow and burn in full sun. Rarely troubled by deer. Dense, compact foliage, light green; Deciduous. Individual fronds are narrow at the bottom, widening gradually for most of the length and then narrowing abruptly to the tip. Fronds quite erect, the bunch forming a narrowly arching V-shape. Shorter fertile (spore-bearing) fronds in the centre of the crown have a different texture and are darker; they are the ostrich-plume-like sets; may last somewhat into winter. Some uses: Borders and Beds, Foliage, Groundcover, Waterside, Kitchen Herb, Wildflower, Naturalizing Woodlands. This is the fern from which the edible fiddleheads may be gathered in spring. Fronds used in cut flower arrangements.
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