Vines, Creepers, Perennials, Grass and Ferns: Ferns
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Athyrium niponicum 'Metallicum'
Japanese Painted Fern. Metallicum has burgundy fronds with a silver overlay
Athyrium nipponicum var. pictum
Japanese Painted Fern is an attractive fern for the shade garden. The dark green fronds are "painted" with an olive and silver variegation, stems have a hint of purple and burgundy. Deciduous and can be trimmed to the ground in late fall or early spring.
Adiantum pedatum
Maidenhair Fern is a very delicate looking fern. Black stemmed fronds have soft green fan-shaped leaflets arranged in a fan-like manner.
Blechnum spicant
Deer Fern is native to the Pacific Northwest. Forms a low clump of sterile green fronds with fertile, ladder-like fronds shooting up from the centre. This fern can handle sunshine but does best in a woodland setting. Evergreen.
Dryopteris erythrosora
Autumn Fern or Japanese Red Shield Fern is a very attractive fern mostly because of its spring colour (Autumn Fern!). The young leaves unfold from their fiddleheads a blend of coppery-red, bronze or pink, taking much longer to mature to green than other ferns. Attractive red spore bodies underneath leaves. Fall colour is similar but not as spectacular. Winter die-back should be cleaned-up in areas wherE this fern is semi-evergreen. Will not tolerate heat or sun.
Matteucia struthiopteris
Ostrich Fern (aka Fiddlehead Fern) is a native, feathery fern, resembling ostrich feather plumes. All fronds are growing from a single, black knob, gracefully arching to at least 1.5m height! Spreads through roots and can become a large patch in time. The fronds are twice divided and are much wider at the top than the base. The initial fronds are the infertile fronds and die-back to be replaced by smaller, fertile fronds in summer. These turn bronzy-gold in fall and persist through winter, turning almost black. Will tolerate sun, but prefers open shade and needs plenty of water through the summer or fronds will become dormant.
Polystichum munitum
Western Sword Fern is an evergreen fern native to the Pacific Northwest. It forms a rosette of tall, narrow, dark green, leathery fronds with leaflets being deeply toothed, resembling the shape of a sword. The undersides of the fronds exhibit brown hairs. Excellent ground cover for shady or semi-shady areas. Prefers cool summers.
Polystichum setiferum
Alaskan Blade Fern or Soft Shield Fern has triangular to lance shaped grass green fronds arching up and outwards giving the fern a feathery appearance. Soft Shield Fern is one of the ferns that can not only be propagated through spores or division of the rhizomes, but bears bulbils ("live young plants") on the midrib of the frond. Evergreen or semi-evergreen.