In my area, Christmas fern is the poster child for dry shade.

I realize that you're in zone 5, but would some type of swordfern work? They tend to look a bit ratty right now, in northern California, but they do grow fairly wide if not tall.

Josh

Maidenhairs MUST have constant moisture. You'll definitely kill them in dry shade. The Christmas fern are a LOT more adaptable. No ferns are really great for dry shade, but bracken is probably the hardiest -- but must be kept under control.

Thanks! I do have a moist location where I can plant the maidenhairs, then.

Any other suggestions for ferns that will work in the dry shade besides the Christmas ferns?

Also, can anyone tell me how tall these will get, and any idea of spread? Are all ferns pretty slow growing?

We have Ostrich ferns in huge drifts, they can get out of hand, but find if I stay on top of the pulling plants at the edges of the area, I can keep it under control. They seem to do just fine in our dry sandy soil.

Regards, Tony

Another fern that likes the same conditions as Christmas fern would be Ebony Spleenwort. Other ones that work for me: Broad beech fern, lady fern and New York fern.

Christmas ferns generally get about 18-24 inches tall. I think they spread slowly. New York fern and Broad beech fern both spread faster than Christmas.

Since planting conditions are not good right now I decided to pot these up temporarily and keep them outside to start adapting to being in dirt and outside. I was surprised to find when opening the opaque bags that they were growing vigorously even though bare root. They were much bigger and healthier-looking than I was expecting: as buying bagged bare-root perennials I think generally is supposed to be a bad idea. If I had waited it would have been more difficult to separate the growing fronds from the roots as they were growing up every which way.

I have not heard of many of these ferns that you are recommending (not surprising since I am just learning about them). Is there a good company to order from? I see ferns in many catalogs but am not sure if I am better off ordering from a specialist grower. At the same time I canÂt spend a lot on the garden this year: next fall I will have 2 kids in college!

I agree with the Ostrich ferm suggestion. They are lovely, spread nicley and need no care.

The ferns I potted up temporarily 2 weeks ago have now unfurled. As it turns out both kinds look exactly the same! So much for the "maidenhair" ferns. So they are all either "Christmas" ferns, like the one package, or some other kind. I have probably no way of IDÂing them other than they look "average". IÂm glad they were cheap. They ARE healthy looking.

Is there some diagnostic page I can use to ID them?

You can post a picture on the Gallery (60K or less). Or check the site below. It should have most of them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hardy ferns

I grow the northern Maidenhair from spore. It is one of the easiest. My experience is that nursery-grown plants are always in containers. Cheap, bareroot plants have been wild-collected and laundered.
The major distinction with Christmas fern is that it is evergreen. If you're in an area with snow they can flatten out in the winter.

They were all planted in the same area almost 2 weeks ago. We had lot of rain and they are doing well. I will probably never know what they are; I went through part of that fern list but it is very long. They could all be Christmas ferns: they look enough like the picture to be: but then again they look like lots of the other pictures too. If they turn out to be evergreen, well maybe then IÂll know.

I donÂt usually buy anything bare root and bagged, but for a first and only time, I guess itÂs not too bad. I never see ferns in the nursery, which is probably why I succumbed.

I donÂt like the idea of wild collecting, so will not be doing this again. Fortunately I only bought the ferns. Is that true for other perennials or just ferns? IÂd be really mad if I nursed along a flower that turned out to be the wrong color or species instead.

Thanks for all the help!