Handy tips for growing healthy ferns

Ferns lend a graceful air to gardens that no other group of plants can match. From the lacy fronds of the maidenhair fern to the bold glossy leaves of holly ferns, these plants provide form, colour and texture for shaded nooks and woodlands. Here are some handy tips to help you grow healthy ferns that will last.

• Ferns repay you with years of beauty for little fuss. Give them partial to full shade with humus-rich, evenly moist soil and they will grow without need for spraying, staking or dividing.
• Set out young potted plants from spring to early summer, paying close attention to planting depth.
• Set clump types with the vase of foliage and the crowns of new fronds level with or slightly above the soil surface.
• Do not bury the crowns, or growing points. For ferns with runners, set the crowns about 2.5 centimetres (one inch) below the surface, with the roots and runners spread out within the hole. After planting, firm the soil and water well.
• Many ferns, especially the clumping species, are slow to establish and may need a little coddling for a full growing season in the form of attentive watering to keep the soil moist.
• Mulch ferns with chopped leaves year-round to keep the crowns from drying out and enrich the soil with organic matter. A spring top-dressing with 2.5 centimetres (one inch) of compost may provide all the nutrients ferns need. However, established ferns that lack vigour often grow noticeably better when treated to an organic fertilizer that is high in nitrogen, such as fish emulsion mixed at half strength. Or you can use a half-strength application of a controlled-release fertilizer distributed evenly on the soil between plants.
• Avoid using full-strength chemical fertilizer; fern roots are easily damaged by fertilizer burn, which causes leaves to brown and curl.
• While insects or diseases rarely bother ferns, the tender fiddleheads can attract deer in spring. Tuck a bar of deodorant bath soap among the plants or purchase a commercial deer repellent and apply as directed.

These ancient plants reproduce by dust-like spores that drop onto moist soil and go through stages of development, eventually producing small ferns.

• In the home garden, the best way to propagate ferns is to dig and divide them in early spring. A
• fter dividing, be sure to provide supplemental water to keep the soil evenly moist until the plants are established.

Ferns can be classified into two groups based on their growth habit.

1. Running ferns grow from creeping stolons that push outwards through the soil, producing new fronds as they creep. Often, new fronds will appear in rows along a stolon.
2. Clumping ferns produce new fronds in clusters that spring up close to the mother plant. Species with creeping stolons grow faster and are more prolific spreaders, whereas clumping species tend to stay in place.

Don't be fooled by ferns' delicate appearance. They are among the oldest plants on Earth, and when grown in suitable sites, they are tough, durable and vigorous. They are perfect for filling low-light pockets in foundation plantings, bedding beneath dense shrubs or covering ground shaded by buildings or a thick canopy of trees. Remember these tips and start growing ferns today!