Hardy Tropicals UK

Hello all,

I want to create an Oregon style corner within my garden.

I have a very limited budget.

I am thinking pine trees with ferns and moss.

My question to you would be.

As im on a budget what would be the best ferns to purchase, ideally ever green and winter hardy, but i cant affford 20+ plants, so want ferns that spread themselves within a season or two.. - possible??

Can I take cuttings of ferns?

I presume digging one up from the wild (theres a large batch of about 20 square meters about 10 miles away from me) is frowned upon due to balancing ecosystems and morals etc

ive tried growing from spores - id like to try again - i had NO luck - what are easiest and fastest to grow yourself that do ok outside when large enough?

Thank you

One Fern that will spread is Matteuccia struthiopteris, the shuttlecock fern. It will want very moist soil though. Another is Onoclea sensibilis, the Sensitive fern which will do better in a slightly drier position the the Matteuccia. Some people find that it can be a bit invasive. Neither are evergreen though. Dryopteris erythrosora is evergreen, but then it won't spread about, perhaps you could use a mix of both?
Some such as Woodwardia (an evergreen) produce small plants at the end of the fronds which root into the soil creating a new plant, though some species are more hardy than others. I have lost Woodwardia radicans here.

You can't take cuttings of Ferns I'm afraid.

Digging up ferns from the wild is indeed frowned upon, as well as being illegal.

I would recommend the shuttlecock fern. Impressive fern although not evergreen in most climates.

The ange do a nice little variety of hardy ferns starting at around £3.50 i think . I bought quite a few last year and they've done quite well . Have you thought of a couple of evergreen Fatsia as well just for some additional interest. They have those too at around the same price

I'm looking to get some ferns for my garden this season too. I've already purchased a Dicksonia, next on the list are the shuttlecock ferns and maybe a Dryopteris of some kind.

This site was linked earlier on another thread: https://www.bowdenhostas.com Seems the place to go for ferns and hostas

I got some shuttlecock ferns last year (only small) and they didn't do a great deal. They have died back and I'm hoping they will really put on a show this year.

do the runners on shuttlecock ferns look like black ,well, runners, with a green blob on the end?

i think mine have put out quite a lot of runners.
how far do the go and when do they turn into new plants?

I'm not sure. Can't see any in my garden but I put down 3-4" of mulch. That said I think the runners are in the soil?

Polystichum munitum would be best. That is the most abundant fern in the forests of western Oregon. Fully hardy in Britain, evergreen, and very attractive, too.

Pic here

Tom2006 wrote:I'm not sure. Can't see any in my garden but I put down 3-4" of mulch. That said I think the runners are in the soil?

well i read stolons for that fern and when i looked it up stolons are above ground.

all 3 of mine have loads of black 'lines' growing radially out from them and most of them look to have a little green shape on the end.

I,m sorry for my ignorance but what is an Oregon corner?

Billdango?

billdango wrote:I,m sorry for my ignorance but what is an Oregon corner?

Billdango?

A corner of a garden with vegetation typical of Oregon, I'd assume

Needs some typical Oregon trees like Douglas-fir, Ponderosa Pine, Grand Fir, Brewer's Spruce, Lawson's Cypress, etc.

Mr List wrote:

Tom2006 wrote:I'm not sure. Can't see any in my garden but I put down 3-4" of mulch. That said I think the runners are in the soil?

well i read stolons for that fern and when i looked it up stolons are above ground.

all 3 of mine have loads of black 'lines' growing radially out from them and most of them look to have a little green shape on the end.

You know more than me then!

just looking today and it seems my first offshoot of my shuttlecock ferns had appeared.

it has come from under ground about 8 inches from the main one.

Conifers wrote:

billdango wrote:I,m sorry for my ignorance but what is an Oregon corner?

Billdango?

A corner of a garden with vegetation typical of Oregon, I'd assume

Needs some typical Oregon trees like Douglas-fir, Ponderosa Pine, Grand Fir, Brewer's Spruce, Lawson's Cypress, etc.

Thanks for clearing that up?

Sounds good though,Pines,grass and ferns.

rgds billdango.