Lady and Painted Ferns—Trial Results

Hidden jewels of the shade garden

If you ’re like me , you find out that plants add up in and out of favor all the clock time . A few years ago , I was all over blue grama grass(Bouteloua gracilis , Zones 4–9 ) , but now it ’s like , blue grama who ? Then there are those plants that never lose their solicitation . paint fern , from the genusAthyrium , is one of those for me . I never tire of seeing it in gardens ; in fact , my appreciation seems unbounded . In my garden , sporelings are pretty common , and I covet every one of them , specially the intrepid 1 that discover their way into fissure and other unexpected places . It ’s not just the forms and colors but their dependability and versatility that are posture of this fairly pocket-sized plant . When the Chicago Botanic Garden trial started , I was a initiate where another group ofAthyriumwas pertain — the lady ferns . However , it took me about a minute to realise their charms ; the few cultivar that we sampled only whet my appetite for more .

| AT A GLANCE |

Athyriumspp . and cvs . Zones:3–8Conditions : Partial to full shadowiness ; moist , well - drained soilPests and diseases : Occasional lapin browsingNative mountain chain : The genusAthyriumhas almost 200 species find around the humankind . Of the two most coarse species , A. filix - feminagrows naturally on several continents , include North America , andA. niponicumis native to China and Japan .

Painted fern and gentlewoman ferns stomach on their leafy meritoriousness alone , having no prime to overshadow the feathery fronds . The lushly verdant madam ferns , however , are in marked contrast to the salvia gullible , silver , red , and burgundy tones of the vibrant painted ferns . The delicateness of peeress ferns ’ fronds misrepresent their stoutness . They are long-wearing and hardy garden flora that can be cultivated throughout North America . My first impression of the painted and lady fern cultivar was that their distinguishing trait were perhaps too elusive . While that may hold true when view separately of each other , when grown together the cultivars were more discrete than expected . I admit that I was primed to care any and all of them , but there were definitely superior excerpt in the mix .

Top performers

In all Lunaria annua , sticking with the species and forego the cultivars can be just as rewarding in the case ofJapanese paint fern(A. niponicumvar.pictum ) . The industrial plant we trialed varied in their foliage colors but were particularly colourful compare to most of the cultivar . new fronds were deep red with silvery green tip , finally brighten to silvery greenish with hints of red in the vein and along the rachis . dayspring sunlight made the color start , but too much Dominicus lead to heat emphasis , especially in droughty full stop . Since new fronds are produced all time of year , stressed plant revive when wet is plentiful again . If you ’re okay with a colour mountain chain rather than a consistent color , then give it a endeavor — after all , it was the Perennial Plant Association ’s 2004 Perennial Plant of the Year for a reason .

While the silvery sage fleeceable and purple color of‘Apple Court ’ Japanese painted fern(A. niponicumvar.pictum‘Apple Court ’ ) is much like other cultivar , its look is frothier because of the forked and tasseled frond lead . All that tasseling or cresting imply there ’s just more leaf than with the typical potpourri , which gives ‘ Apple Court ’ a somewhat fuller and fluffier habit . The fronds stand up straighter and tall than those of most cultivars , too , produce it one of the largest in the trial at 24 column inch tall and 36 inch wide .

vulgar lady fern(A. filix - femina ) abide a passing resemblance to Japanese painted fern , but its long - arching fronds and clumping wont give it a emphatically formal profile . The feathery lustrous immature frond and graceful form — reminiscent of a shuttle — may give the incorrect impression that it ’s too delicate for the average garden . Although noblewoman fern was occasionally try by heat and drouth in midsummer , it demonstrate in force heat energy resistance during an especially hot , dry catamenia in 2007 . Lady fern is regularly blow as drought tolerant , although I would n’t push that too far — it prefers dampish , shady location protect from air current and sunshine . A overplus of cultivars are usable to gardeners ; many of the oldest forms originated in Victorian England .

The young fronds of‘Pewter Lace ’ Japanese paint fern(A. niponicumvar.pictum‘Pewter Lace ’ ) are exquisite — dark burgundy emphasize with silvery green tips . ‘ Burgundy Lace ’ was a close coloring material lucifer in spring , and both cultivar matured to silver - green with a swath of purpleness down the midriff of the fronds . While both were beautiful , ‘ Pewter Lace ’ was untouched by drouth stress and folio scorch under the same conditions as ‘ Burgundy Lace ’ . The purple metal color and lacy texture of ‘ Pewter Lace ’ mingles sublimely with black - purple - leaved coral bells ( Heucheraspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–9 ) such as ‘ Obsidian ’ or ‘ Black Pearl ’ and the larger leaves of brunnera ( Brunnera macrophyllacvs . , Zones 4–9 ) or rodgersia ( Rodgersiaspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–9 , visualize ) . Its habit — like that of all Nipponese painted fern — is a pleasingly haphazard arrangement of arciform and twisted fronds that can reach 18 inches magniloquent and 30 inches wide .

How to speak fern

While common botanical damage can be used to delineate the feathery foliation of ferns , there does exist an entire world of specialised fern terminology . Familiarity with these terms can aid in deciphering catalogue description and will make you sound like an expert when garden visitors call for questions .

‘ Branford Beauty’(A.‘Branford Beauty’)—one of three salient paint - fern hybrid we trialed — has an upright clumping use that is full - on ma’am fern , while the coloured fronds arch and trend like Japanese paint fern . ‘ Branford Beauty ’ was more uniformly silver - green than other cultivars ; former purple highlight wither speedily , and the aging leave were of a slenderly dour greenish along the purple back . ‘ ghostwriter ’ similarly mirrors the peeress fern with distinctly erect fronds and a strongly vase - work habit , but its silvery fleeceable fronds — bright in spring — are lighter than ‘ Branford Beauty ’ . Although both are lovely , ‘ Branford Beauty ’ was n’t as slow as ‘ Ghost ’ to issue in the bound and therefore had the reward in my eyes .

‘ Victoriae’(A. filix - femina‘Victoriae ’ ) , a classic Victorian - era lady fern , features crisscrossing slender immature auricle that form distinctive Adam ’s along the rachis and nodding , fan - influence tip . There ’s both a playfulness and a Victorian fussiness to the finely divide frond . This cultivar ’s robust , vase - form habit with upright arching theme was a reproducible favorite in the trial . Its chemical attraction to ‘ Dre ’s Dagger’—purportedly a dwarf sport of ‘ Victoriae’—was indisputable , although the pinnae of ‘ Dre ’s Dagger ’ were narrower . Were it not for some winter crown damage , ‘ Dre ’s Dagger ’ would have gotten four stars , too .

‘ Encourage’(A. filix - femina‘Encourage ’ ) , one of the very secure lady ferns in the visitation , is a modern selection of the old - timey cap variant ‘ Vernoniae Cristatum ’ . The light green frond are tasseled at the tips , wait like a chorus stemma of frilly petticoat . boring to develop the first summertime , ‘ Encourage ’ had a full-bodied vase - shaped habit by the second year and was peculiarly full and racy by the fourth yr . The plants were in full sun by midafternoon , so some leaf scorching was observed occasionally in July and August .

‘ Branford Rambler’(A.‘Branford Rambler ’ ) is essentially a green - leaved version of Nipponese paint fern , and I found it surprisingly refreshing in a sea of silvery curves . Its coloring comes from the madam fern ; the bright green fronds miss any silver , but they hold a bit of purple in the vertebral column and veins . For several years , ‘ Branford Rambler ’ seemed like it was a clumper , but finally it began gamboling about like other spreaders , reaching over 40 inch wide . Although it was sporadically affected by drouth , ‘ Branford Rambler ’ was notably the best looking fern in tardy August 2010 after a period of seriously juiceless atmospheric condition .

Newer varieties to obsess over

Unlike with other Japanese painted ferns , the luminous weak green fronds of‘Pearly White’(A. niponicumvar.pictum‘Pearly White ’ ) feature a central swath of tusk without any purple high spot . Otherwise , this cultivar is just as dependable and easy to develop , but percolate refinement is good to protect the pale leaves from scorching sunlight . To my eyes , pairing the frozen frond with white - flowered false hydrangea ( Deinanthe bifida , Zones 4–8 ) might be both textural and monochromatic perfection . Both like a moist , funny garden , and the juxtaposition of lacy fronds and broad , cleft leaves is clever . ‘ Pearly White ’ grows to about 12 inches grandiloquent and 24 inches wide .

‘ Pearly White’,Photo : Danielle Sherry

‘ Godzilla’,Photo : Bill Johnson

While you might not lie with what exactly to expect with a name like‘Godzilla’(A.‘Godzilla ’ ) , you know that it wo n’t be meek . In form and color , ‘ Godzilla ’ await conversant — arching silvery green fronds with green highlights and dark imperial spine . But in size , it ’s almost a monster . With the potency to reach 3 human foot tall and 6 feet wide of the mark , it stands well above and outdistances the middling painted fern . ‘ Godzilla ’ was discovered by Tony Avent at Plant Delights Nursery , so you may be check it ’s not extend of the manufacturing plant .

Truth be recite , I had‘Lemon Cream ’ painted fern(A. niponicum‘Lemon Cream ’ ) briefly a few age ago but had to let it go when I lost my shade garden . Though I was intrigued by the idea of lacy fleeceable fronds speckled with lemon - cream spots , I was n’t certain if it would be fun or depend like the pox ! Morning sun enhance this fern ’s unique coloring , which becomes more striking afterwards in the season . ‘ Lemon Cream ’ has the irregular habit of a Japanese paint fern but only gets to 8 inches tall and 30 inches wide of the mark . ‘ Lemon Cream ’ total from Asia , where diversification rules . handiness may still be trammel , but it ’s deserving the search .

‘ Lemon Cream ’ paint fern , Photo : good manners of Plant Delights Nursery

‘ Joy Ride’,Photo : courtesy of Plant Delights Nursery

‘ joyfulness Ride’(A. niponicum‘Joy Ride ’ ) is another recent paint - fern foundation from Plant Delights Nursery . The green fronds feature a silvery cardinal geographical zone and frilly crested tips . I ca n’t key the frilled leafage considerably than Tony Avent , so why assay ? “ It has more petticoats than you ’d see at a RuPaul review . ” It ’s expect to be 20 inch grandiloquent and 36 inch all-embracing , but I have a feeling it ’ll look much more strong .

Trial results

| PARAMETERS |

Since 2002 , the Chicago Botanic Garden has evaluated 26 painted ferns and gentlewoman ferns in our relative test .

How long:4 yearsZone:5b

Conditions : Well - drained , alkaline , stiff - loam soil . The of course shaded site initially received either no sunlight or varying levels of permeate sunlight throughout the twenty-four hour period . The loss of a large tree diagram in 2006 break a percentage of the site to full Dominicus in mid to late afternoon . Except in menstruation of drouth , the ferns were mostly adaptable to the increase light photograph .

Care : We provided minimum care , take into account plants to thrive or fail under natural conditions . Besides observing their ornamental trait , we monitored how well they grew and adapted to the environmental and territory condition while hold a close eye on any disease or pest trouble and assessing flora injury over winter .

Important Fern Facts

criminal maintenance . photograph : Danielle Sherry

air division . Photo : gapphotos.com

Siting

Painted ferns and lady fern are generally easy to raise , but proper siting is essential . They choose moist , well - enfeeble soil in partial to full shade but can tolerate some sunlight . Morning sunlight heighten the leafage color of paint ferns .

Moisture

Consistent moisture is essential to keep ferns healthy and luxuriant ; even so , frond may look shattered by summertime ’s ending . with child rainfall or irrigation can beat down painted fern , but fronds pop back in a day or two unless they were broken ( the stipe and rachises are brittle ) .

Pests

Deer seldom bear upon these ferns , but occasional rabbit browse can be a problem .

Maintenance

remainder - of - time of year cleanup is a breeze . plainly rake or trim back away dried fronds in late downslope or other spring .

Propagation

springiness division or tissue paper - acculturation is necessary to circulate cultivar .

Spores

Fern spores ( dark-brown dustlike tinge on the back of fronds ) will germinate promptly in the garden . The seedlings , scream sporelings , will not come true to the parent .

Richard Hawke is plant evaluation manager for the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe , Illinois .

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Lady and Painted ferns side by side

It’s hard to argue with their gracefulness.Lady ferns (left) may not have the same colorful foliage as painted ferns (right), but they do possess similar habits, hardiness, and eye-catching appeal.Photos: (left) Paul Debois/gapphotos.com, (right) Visions/gapphotos.com

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