Ferny Mmen 2,01$ the HARDY FERN FOUNDATION
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Foundation ferny mmen 2,01$ THE HARDY FERN FOUNDATION P.O. Box 3797 Federal Way, WA 98063-3797 Web site: www.hardyfems.org The Hardy Fern Foundation was founded in 1989 to establish a comprehen¬ sive collection of the world’s hardy ferns for display, testing, evaluation, public education and introduction to the gardening and horticultural community. Many rare and unusual species, hybrids and varieties are being propagated from spores and tested in selected environments for their different degrees of hardiness and ornamental garden value. The primary fern display and test garden is located at, and in conjunction with, The Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden at the Weyerhaeuser Corporate Headquarters, in Federal Way, Washington. Affiliate fern gardens are at the Bainbridge Island Library, Bainbridge Island, Washington; Bellevue Botanical Garden, Bellevue, Washington; Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Birmingham, Alabama; Coastal Maine Botanical Garden, Boothbay, Maine; Dallas Arboretum, Dallas, Texas; Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver, Colorado; Georgia Perimeter College Garden, Decatur, Georgia; Inniswood Metro Gardens, Columbus, Ohio; Lakewold, Tacoma, Washington; Lotusland, Santa Barbara, California; Rotary Gardens, Janesville, Wisconsin; Strybing Arboretum, San Francisco, California; University of California Berkeley Botanical Garden, Berkeley, California; and Whitehall Historic Home and Garden, Louisville, Kentucky. Hardy Fern Foundation members participate in a spore exchange, receive a quarterly newsletter and have first access to ferns as they are ready for distribution. Cover design by Willanna Bradner HARDY FERN FOUNDATION QUARTERLY THE HARDY FERN FOUNDATION QUARTERLY Volume 25 Editor- Sue Olsen ISSN 1542-5517 President’s Message Richie Steffen HFF Affiliate Garden Report Georgia Perimeter College Native Botanical Gardef E... 51-54 George Sanko HFF Affiliate Garden Report Lotusland.55 Virginia Hayes Color Photos.56-57 Japan Fern Trip continued.58-61 Tim Pyner, Pat Riehl and Daniel Yansura Polystick um xdycei - Poly stick um prolifer um x P. braunii.61-62 James R. Horrocks She likes ferns.62-64 Jo Laskowski Welcome New Members!.64 *** Mark your calendars *** HFF Fall Social - October 10, 2015 at the Bellevue Botanical Garden Come for the entertainment, displays and plants for sale, as we host our annual get-together for all our membership. Hardy Fern Foundation Quarterly Summer 2015 - 49 President’s Message ~ Summer 2015 As the new president of the Hardy Fern Foundation I am looking forward to representing our organization on its regional, national and international platforms. We have accomplished so much since the beginning of the HFF and I am excited about how much we have coming up in future years. As the curator of the Elisabeth C Miller Botanical Gardens and in charge of overseeing a large fern collection, I appreciate ferns from the garden to the wild and look forward to working with our membership and the gardening public to encourage the enjoyment of ferns. The Hardy Fern Foundation celebrated the 44th Annual Fern Fest plant sale in early June. This long standing sale also coincides with our annual meeting and fern lecture. This year John Van den Meerendonk retires from his position as president after three years of fulfilling this commitment. John’s tireless and enthusiastic support of the HFF and ferns in general has inspired many of us and personally I feel I have large shoes to fill as the new president. A huge thank you also goes to Rick Peterson for his service as Treasurer for the last three years. All of Rick’s efforts are much appreciated and we are looking forward to his continued service on the board. I am looking forward to working with our new Treasurer, Nancy Strahle. At bur annual meeting three new board members were added including Forrest Campbell and Dave Gibson. Forrest and Dave are filling two vacated positions and they both have attended and volunteered at many HFF events and are eager to participate in the guiding of the organization. Our third new board member is Michelle Bundy, who shifted from being curator of the HFF for the last 19 years to being the regional sales representative of the wholesale nursery, Casa Flora. We sincerely thank Michelle for those many years of being an exceptionally dedicated employee with many creative ideas and an abundance of initiative. I’m sure these will translate into her service as a member of the board. I would like to welcome all three new board members and congratulations to the other members of the board in continuing their service. Members who were able to attend the annual meeting heard Pat Riehl speak about her trip to Japan. Those that could not make the meeting can enjoy the second installment of Pat’s article about her travels. It was very interesting to see the rich fern flora of this country and see some of the cultural landmarks of Japan. Our affiliate garden program is an essential part of our education program. This issue continues the features of these gardens and their fern collections. I recently had the opportunity to visit Whitehall in Louisville, Kentucky. It reminded me of how much dedication these institutions have to the HFF and their fern gardens. I am looking forward to reading about each one I hope you enjoy them as well. All the best, Richie Steffen Hardy Fern Foundation President 50 -Summer-2015 Hardy Fern Foundation Quarterly Our HFF 25th Anniversary continues with informative reports from our affiliate gardens. Welcome to Georgia Perimeter College’s garden and Lotusland. Hardy Fern Foundation-Affiliate Garden Report Georgia Perimeter College Native Botanical Garden George Sanko ~ Decatur, GA Introduction: The native plant garden at Georgia Perimeter College has been an affiliate Garden of the Hardy Fern Foundation since 2011. The garden is celebrating 25 years in 2015, and in that time has accumulated 390 + fern taxa from all over the world. The garden is located on the flood plain of Doolittle Creek in a region southeast of downtown Atlanta known as Soapstone Ridge. The flood plain itself is composed of Mixed Mesic forest, with high ground of Pine Forest and Meadow-Roadside habitat. Periodic flooding and poor native soils are our chief challenges: our garden soils are amended with sand, compost, and Permatil (heat-expanded slate) to improve growing conditions. (See photo pg. 56) Weather & Climate: The brutal winters of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 have largely missed the Georgia Piedmont region, most of the brunt of the storms tracking north of the Georgia-Tennessee border. Of the two winters, that of 2013-2014 was certainly the worst, with snow, ice, and several periods of below-freezing temperatures for two days or more. These winters have by and large had little effect on the ferns in the Garden, with the possible exception of our xeric species, both Georgia native and Southwestern native, that show little tolerance for winters that are both cold and wet. Despite the cold winter, the near-normal rainfall we experienced in 2014 rendered the fern display the lushest in recent memory. Certainly more devastating to our plants was the “Easter Freeze” of 2007. While not particularly late for our region of the state, the freeze was particularly damaging because no freezing temperatures had occurred since Valentine’s Day nearly two months previous, and there were 3 nights in a row where the temperature fell below 32 degrees F. Although drought has not been a significant factor since 2012, it was ever¬ present for the preceding twenty years or more. Periodic flooding also puts our plants to the test: the garden has flooded many times in 25 years, the most notable recent floods being in 2005 and 2009. Rating Criteria: The Garden was reviewed on March 21, 2015. Temperatures had moderated enough by that time that the crosiers of many fern taxa were emerging, although some ferns were evaluated that had not yet shown signs of emergence. As we evaluated the plants, we made performance observations at both the genus and, in certain instances, the species level. In selecting and rating the taxa featured below, we developed four criteria by which to rate them, and an example genus that fits the criterion: Hardy Fern Foundation Quarterly Summer 2015-51 1 Thriving-Excellent - ferns that have survived in the Garden for 10 years or more; plants consistently look good and spread; top performers. Coniogramme is a non-native genus that gives a thriving performance in our Garden. 2 Adequate - ferns that do well for 5 years +/-; severe weather might cause decline or death; plants lack vigor and spread little if at all. Arachniodes is an example of an adequate, non-native genus. 3 Average - plants may survive but do not spread in the Garden. Our native Adiantum pedatum defies cultivation unless perfectly sited. It is better suited to the mountains farther north. Dryopteris sieboldii is another example for Category 3. 4 Poor - ferns may survive 1-2 years; often succumb to heat, cold, flood, or other adverse condition. Blec/tnum, another genus of which we have no natives, is a suitable example for Category 4. Respectfully submitted by George Sanko and Rick Barnes Plant Rate Comments Adiantum pedatum 2 Native to GA mountains; perfect siting critical in Piedmont Adiantum xmairisii 2 Best performer over the years Arachniodes davalliaeformis 2 Holds up well once established; nearly evergreen; took a hit in the winter of 2013-2014 Arachniodes simplicior 2 Most other species do well also Asplenium ebenoides 3 Native - grows well where you don’t plant it; doesn’t grow where you do Asplenium trichomanes 3 A pleasant surprise this year; growing in rock that is neither sandstone nor limestone Astrolepis sinuata 2-3 Native - survives but struggles with cold, wet winters Athyrium asplenioides 2-3 Our native is great! Athyrium niponicum 2 Thrives, but tends to fade in summer heat Athyrium otophorum 2 Does not spread, but does flourish Blechnum spicant /B.