Tagged With: Ferns

Adiantum pedatum (Northern Maidenhair Fern)

Photograph taken on Monday, May 27, 2019 by Henry
Adiantum pedatum (Northern Maidenhair Fern)

Adiantum pedatum (Northern Maidenhair Fern)

I’ve posted pictures of this fern before and I’ll probably do so again. It’s a pretty fern and worth growing, if you have any interest in ferns. I actually have it in a less than ideal spot that gets pretty much full sun from about noon onwards. It would be happier in full shade. The Missouri Botanical Garden page on this plant says, “High summer heat may cause fronds to brown by mid to late summer, particularly if good soil moisture is not maintained and/or plants are grown in too much sun.” Yep, that happens here. I really need to move it, or at least take a piece or two of it to grow in a better location. It does amazingly well in the sun, but it could be so much happier.

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Frond of Ferns

Photograph taken on Tuesday, May 05, 2020 by Henry
Fern Fronds

Fern Fronds

I’ve used the joke before but it’s true, I’m fond of fern fronds. We have a few different ferns in the yard. There is the northern maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum, featured seven times so far, apparently), Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum var. pictum), ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris), and sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis). This is, I believe, a Dryopteris species, but I need to do some work if I’m going to identify it for sure. The genus is generally known as the wood ferns but some species have particular names, like male fern (D. filix-mas, which is what I suspect this is) or buckler fern.

The other species this might be, and perhaps it’s more likely based on size, is the lady fern (Athyrium filix-femina). Both the male fern and lady fern are native and both are nice for a shady garden. I really should figure out which this is because every time I’m asked, I have to qualify my answer. A fern expert could probably look at my photo and tell me right off, but I need to look up the differences and look more carefully. If and when I do that, I’ll update this post.

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Frost on Fern Fronds

Photograph taken on Wednesday, December 23, 2020 by Henry
Frost on Fern Fronds

Frost on Fern Fronds

It hasn’t realle been that cold yet this winter. We did have snow last week but it was only down into the upper 20s at night. It was chilly this morning and the forecast is for continued cold for a while, with lows around 20°F. Still not frigid, but colder. I took some mail out to the box this morning and noticed the frost on these fern fronds so I got my camera and went out a second time to take a few photos. The frost didn’t last long, melting shortly after the sun hit it. But I wasn’t going to stay out too long, anyway. I was in a t-shirt and barefoot. Bracing.

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U.S. Botanic Garden

Photograph taken on Sunday, January 26, 2025 by Henry
Birds Nest and Maidenhair Ferns

Birds Nest and Maidenhair Ferns

Tree and Tassel Ferns

Tree and Tassel Ferns

Cathy suggested we go to the U.S. Botanic Garden today after church. It’s a place I enjoy and I thought it was a really good idea, so, we went. The last time we were there was in July of 2016. In the summer, of course, the outside garden is nice, too, but today it was all about being indoors. The large, central portion of the garden is great, with room for very large plants and trees, but I think the orchid and fern rooms are especially nice. There were only a few orchids in bloom but the maidenhair (Adiantum) and bird’s next (Asplenium) ferns as well as other moisture loving plants made that room nice. The fern room with it’s tree ferns and a few large tassel-ferns (which are actually clubmosses), is also very pretty.

I brought a sketch pad with me, along with a few pencils, thinking I might sit and sketch a little, but in the end, we didn’t sit much and I didn’t do anything but take photos. I think I’m intimidated by a blank page at this point, but at least I carried the sketch book with me. Maybe on the next outing I’ll actually sit and open it up.

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