Hardy Fern Habitats
When I think of hardy ferns, the environment that first springs to mind is the shade of moist woodlands or the dappled sunlight along a stream bank. Yet ferns are a versatile, highly adaptable family of plants containing species that can withstand considerable drought and even baking sun. If you have adequate space, hay-scented fern (Dennstaedtia punctiloba) can make a lovely groundcover in dry shade, and it also tolerates sun. A rapid spreader, it has light-green, 12-inch fronds. Ebony spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron) has dark-green fronds, 8 to 18 inches long, and is another good choice for natural areas. It is happy in dry, well-drained soil in partial shade. It is evergreen in most places, as is the larger Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides), which has dark-green fronds 12 to 24 inches long. Once established, Christmas fern adapts well to dry soils in shade or part sun. The colorful Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum), though a workhorse in moist, shady gardens, also seems to acclimate well to drier conditions. The genus Cheilanthes, whose members are called lip or cloak ferns, contains some native and exotic standouts for sunny rock gardens. The lovely, sage-green Ecklon’s lip fern (C. eckloniana) admirably survived our dry summer in a rock border at J.C. Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh with little aid and comfort. The Alabama lip fern (C. alabamensis) and wooly lip fern (C. tomentosa) are contemporaries with similar stamina. Sources for these and other hardy ferns, as well as helpful cultivation advice, include Plant Delights Nursery (www.plantdelights.com) and Sandy Mush Herb Nursery (www.sandymushherbs.com).