i'm going to be putting some ferns in my woodlands, to eventually hide some piles of wood, twigs, limbs that neighbors accumulated there over the years. i've been working on hiding some with my leaves and green cuttings, helping the composting process along. :-) but anyways i want the ferns to have a natural feel to them. i plan to use ferns that are suppose to max out at 4' high and 5' wide. i'm not sure how far to space them from each other, or the path that i take the clippings and leaves out to the compost piles. i'm planning on getting either a clumping or crown type. no spreading, i don't want them in my garden beds eventually. ;-) i would appreciate any knowledge about this type of endeavor.
another question, when they say a fern will be 4' high by 5' wide, does this mean that the the 4' fronds will bend over about 2.5' on all sides?
thank you i'm looking forward to learning more about ferns.
a fellow dger new to ferns.
debi z and my little pekingese gardening doggi, franklin
natural woodlands feel?
Just a suggestion-
I think this depends a lot on the ferns you see around you that you might want for this kind of naturalized type "ground cover".
Try taking a walk through some of the open " wild" areas where you have noticed ferns growing that seem to offer the look you hope for.
Then call your local extension office and ask them which ferns are perfect for what you want to do. Ask them to walk with you through the areas that you feel would be right for what you want for your yard. Ask for someone from their master gardeners program to help you work to "naturalize" the area you want to have these ferns.
The "master gardeners" program in your area is geared up to offer this kind of expert support. I really think this is a perfect project for someone who is looking to be certified, and get volunteer hours- you might be able to help each other!
And mucho good luck!
:)
Amy
hi amy,
thanks for the ideas and information. i don't even know if there are ferns that large here naturally, but i think they'll look nice there, so i'll give it a go.
the closest extension service to my home is about 50 minutes away and that is too far for me, it is associated with the university of massachusetts and there are a couple of community colleges closer by. perhaps i'll give them a call. thanks again and enjoy this lovely weather. i'm here in orlando for a couple more weeks. the warmth feel wonderful.
debi & franklin
Debi, there is a fern, Ostrich fern, that you might like. Does well in your zone and is widely grown by nurseries, easy to transplant (if you know someone with a patch), spreads by underground runners and gets big. Try planting ferns in 'drifts', that is in short crescents or in an "S" pattern or as single plants in irregular spacing - plant one, take a step, plant another, take a step and a half, plant another etc, and don't walk it a straight line, turn right and left at random. Another fern that you might look for is Adiantheum pedatum, a low grower that you could plant at the edges of the 'compost piles' in the area you are trying to improve. It is a very beautiful plant.
thanks for the ideas dale
debi, a. pedatum
That was tiny, lets try a bigger one.
dale,
the pendantum is a beautiful plant. thanks for sharing. i do enjoy seeing gardeners pictures, to the professional ones. i feel i'm getting a better feel of the plant.
Debi, do you have a small woodlands or a large one ...I have just a mini woodlands , but can still enjoy planting several little types of ferns with a few larger ones thrown in here and there .This mini woodlands that I have is on a slight hill in a subdivision and my grandkids love to run around the few little stone paths that I put there. I couldn't grow grass there, because the trees block out to much sun ,so I decided to use some of the native stuff growing there and some store bought things like hostas and little plants and trees that I rescued from when they built my sub-division and bulldozed just about everything in sight. PaPlanter....Tom
hi tom,
i have a large woodlands. although i only want to do something with the part that is closest to my path. the path used to reach out to the water, pond, but now with a lot of help from mother nature, it only goes about half way. how?????????? big branches from trees that fell during a couple of different storms. they are far away from the house. i have a garden going along th elength of the woodlands, and then a path going out into them, were i put a lot of stuff for composting naturally. :-) leaves & grass mostly.
the woodlands you fixed up for your grandkids sounds great. they must really enjoy it. go grandpa!!!
debi & franklin
Debi, wonder if you received my D Mail...???? with link to my mini woodlands....Tom (also known as Tomasincas on other web sites ) if you did, let me know if link worked