2009 Calendar

Volume 36 Number 1 Jan-Mar 2009

Editors: Joan Nester-Hudson and David Schwartz

2009 Calendar submitted by: Tom Stuart Wednesday, May 20, Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham Fern Society Annual Fern Lecture Annual lecture on May 20, 2009 at The Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Birmingham, AL Speaker: Pat Riehl (will talk about the stumpery in her garden on Vashon Island or some variation of that topic) Contact info: Presi- dent, Birmingham Fern Society, Birmingham Botanical Gardens, 2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, AL 35223

Friday-Saturday, June 5–6, Seattle, Washington Hardy Fern Foundation Annual Fern Festival Plant sale featuring an outstanding selection of ferns and companion plants opens at 1:00. Sue Olsen will present the evening lecture Ferns of the World - Where to Find Them and How to Grow Them. The lecture will be that evening at 7:30 PM preceded by a coffee hour and plant sale at 7:00. Saturday: Plant sale continues from 10:00 - 2:00. The festival will be at the Center for Urban Horticulture, 3501 NE 41st St in the University district in Seattle. Experts will be on hand to help you chose the best plants for your site and preferences. Contact: Michelle Bundy [email protected]

Saturday-Sunday, June 6- 7, 2009, Coral Gables, Florida Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Tropical Fern & Exotic Plant Society Annual Show and Sale Plant show and sale: 10901 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables, Florida (Miami). Open 9:30 - 4:30 both days. Garden Members Free. General Admission: $20.00 (admission price to the Garden, Show and Sale Included)

Wednesday, June 17, Birmingham, Alabama, Annual Fern Show and Sale Plant show and sale at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Birmingham, AL. Contact info: President, Birmingham Fern Society, Birmingham Botanical Gardens, 2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, AL 35223

Saturday-Thursday, July 25-30, Snowbird, Utah Botanical Society of America Annual Conference Botanical Society of America joint meeting with the Mycological Society of America, American Bryological and Lichenological Society, American Fern Society and the American Society of Plant Taxonomists. Conference information on-line at: www.2009.botany.org/conferences

Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 u Page 1 July 31 - Aug 2 - Leaving Friday at 7:00 am from Las AFS OFFICERS PRESIDENT: David Conant, Lyndon State College, Vegas, NV returning to Las Vegas Sunday evening. PO Box 919, Lyndonville, VT 05851-0919 David. (2.5 Days) [email protected] PRESIDENT-ELECT: Warren D. Hauk, 517 Samson Ferns of Zion National Park and the northern Mojave Talbot Hall of Biological Sciences, Department of Biology, Denison University, Granville, OH 43023 Desert $215.00 [email protected] Includes Transportation, Motel rooms (double occupancy) for two nights SECRETARY: W. Carl Taylor, Division of (7/31 and 8/1). Breakfasts on 8/1 and 8/2, Picnic-style lunches all three Environmental Biology, National Science field days (7/31, 8/1, and 8/2) Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Michael Windham [email protected] VA 22230 [email protected] TREASURER: James D. Caponetti, Division of Biology, M303 Walters Life Sciences Building, Sunday- Saturday, August 16-22, Humboldt Field University of Tennessee, 1414 Cumberland Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-0830 [email protected] Research Institute, Steuben, Maine MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY: George Yatskievych, Taxonomy and Biology of Ferns and Lycophytes Missouri Botanical Garden, P.O. Box 299, St. Louis, MO 63166-0299. [email protected] Instructor: Robbin Moran CURATOR OF BACK ISSUES: James D. Montgom This course covers the identification, phylogeny, and ecology of ferns ery, Ecology III, Inc., 804 Salem Blvd, Berwick, PA and lycophytes. Morning lectures will review the major families and 18603-9801. [email protected] CURATOR OF THE SPORE EXCHANGE: Denia place these in a phylogenetic context. The afternoon field trips will Mandt, 12616 Ibbetson Ave, Downey, CA 90242- emphasize identification and ecology of local genera and species. 5050. The course will visit several habitat types along and near the eastern WEBMASTER: Stephen McDaniel, 1716 Piermont Ave., Hacienda Heights, CA 91745. webmaster@ Maine coast to see as many species as possible. Herbarium specimens amerfernsoc.org of northeastern species not found locally will be available for study. OUTREACH COORDINATOR: Tom Stuart, PO Box 517, Croton Falls, NY 10519. [email protected] Besides identification, we will discuss the distinctive biology of ferns, such as their life cycle, hybridization, polyploidy, unusual adaptations EDITORS OF AFS PUBLICATIONS (iridescent ferns, ant ferns, apogamy), biogeography, and uses of ferns AMERICAN FERN JOURNAL: Jennifer Geiger, Department of Natural Sciences, Carroll College, by people. We will also discuss the sweeping changes that have taken Helena, MT 59625. [email protected] place over the past ten years in understanding the phylogeny of ferns MEMOIRS: David B. Lellinger, 16 Nottingham and lycophytes (for instance, why the term “fern allies” is no longer Rd., Brevard, NC 28712-9785. dlellinger@ earthlink.net valid). “Highly recommended” – Tom Stuart. Dr. Robbin Moran is FIDDLEHEAD FORUM: Joan Nester-Hudson, Box Curator of Ferns at The New York Botanical Garden and the author of 2116, Department of Biological Sciences, Sam four books and numerous papers. Houston State University, Huntsville TX 77341- 2116 ([email protected]) and David Schwartz, Humboldt Field Research Institute, PO Box 9, 59 Eagle Hill Road, 9715 Chirtsey Way, Bakersfield, CA 93312-5617 Steuben, Maine 04680 or phone 207-546-2821 or http://eaglehill.us/ ([email protected]) The Editors of FIDDLEHEAD FORUM welcome contributions from members and friends, including Saturday-Sunday, August 15-16, 2009, San Diego, miscellaneous notes, and reviews of books on ferns. Articles may be submitted electronically on disk California (PC compatible) or typed (using a simple font like Helvetica in a minimum of a 12pt font.) San Diego Fern Society Annual Show and Sale Regular membership in the American Fern Society is The show and sale will be held in Casa del Prado room 101, Balboa on a calendar-year basis and includes access to field Park, San Diego, California. The show is open noon to 5pm Saturday trips and the spore exchange. Regular members receive Fiddlehead Forum, but not the American and 10am to 4pm Sunday. The show is free! Fern Journal, for $12 (+$3 expedited delivery fee, For information on entering ferns for the show, or checking meeting except U.S.A., Canada, and Mexico) Individuals interested in regular or journal membership should dates or anything else, email Kathie Russell at [email protected] or contact the membership secretary. 4780 Glen, La Mesa CA 91941

AFS HOME PAGE http://www.amerfernsoc.org

Page 2 u Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 September 30-October 13 British Pteridological Society – Hardy Fern Foundation Field Excursion, California, USA First Circular, Itinerary (condensed)– Day 1 – Fly to San Francisco Day 2 – Tour garden of Dan Yansura, (rare tree ferns and exotic species), Strybing Arboretum, the tree fern dell and the conservatory. Evening welcome banquet. Day 3 – Tour garden of Tom Ballinger (varied collection), Berkeley Botanical Garden and the fern garden at Tilden Regional Park Day 4 – Drive over the Golden Gate bridge to Mt. Tamalpais for a few hours of ferning. Afternoon continue to the Mendocino area and tour the Mendocino Botanical Garden which is on the Pacific Ocean. Day 5 – Tour Russian Gulch in the morning and then drive with fern stops to the Redwood Forest and the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park area. Day 6 – Tour Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and hike Fern Canyon (high cliffs draped with maidenhairs) to the Gold Bluff ocean beach. Afternoon scenic drive over the coast range with fern stops. Day 7 – Yosemite National Park. Stop at Sutter’s Creek of gold rush fame. Other short stops. Day 8 – Touring and ferning in Yosemite with its spectacular scenery. Day 9 – Sequoia National Park in the morning and tour Kern Canyon – Pellaea andromedifolia, P. mucronata, Argyrochosma jonesii, Cheilanthes covillei and the hybrid C. intertexta with xeric specialist David Schwartz Day 10 – Bakersfield and tour xeric garden of David Schwartz. Afternoon to Los Angeles area, with overnight near LA County Arboretum in Arcadia. Day 11 – Tour LA County Arboretum or visit a nursery or two in the morning. Afternoon tour of Huntington Gardens which houses Barbara Hoshizaki’s fern collection. Day 12 – Santa Barbara and tour the 37 acre botanical garden, Lotusland featuring specialized theme gardens including a fern garden with tree ferns, platyceriums and other tropicals Day 13 – Mission La Purisima and Mission San Miguel. Take the scenic coastal Highway 1 with a final fern stop at Half Moon Bay Nursery. Farewell banquet. Day 14 – Depart or tour around in San Francisco. The tour will be limited to 24 participants. For information updates and to make your reservation or indicate your interest contact Sue Olsen at foliageg@juno. com or 2003 128th Ave. S.E., Bellevue, WA 98005 USA. Committee – Sue Olsen, Dan Yansura, Darren Lloyd, David Schwartz, Pat Acock.

(note from Joan N.-H. This extensive itinerary is included so that for those of us who will not be able to attend this exciting field excursion, we may be able to include some of these parks/gardens/sites in our next holiday in California.)

Election Results Results are in for the 2009 AFS election. There was only one position to be filled this year and more than 240 members returned ballots. Starting after the 2009 annual meeting, our new Secretary will be Dr. Mary Stensvold. Mary has been a loyal member of the American Fern Society since 1976. She did her undergraduate and Masters work at Central Washington University in Ellensburg. For her Ph.D, which she completed in 2008 at Iowa State University, she explored phylogenetic relationships of the Botrychium lunaria complex. Mary currently holds the position of Regional Botanist with the US Forest Service, Alaska Region. Her research interests continue to center on the moonworts (Botrychium, Ophioglossaceae).

Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 u Page 3 2009 Speakers submitted by Tom Stuart Speaker Type of activity/Season/Location of activity Topics Ralph C. Archer 459 Turnberry Ln. Demonstration in spring or fall. Fern propagation. Preparing sites. Shelbyville, KY 40065 Garden tour, spring to fall, of fern stumperie Shade gardens and growing hardy ferns. (502 ) 647-9326 and woodland garden. Louisville, KY Planting a stumperie. [email protected] Sharon Banister Texas A&M University, Hands on work shop, demonstration or Growing ferns from spores. Also on plant Horticulture Dept. HFSB illustrated talk. propagation, tissue culture, and landscaping. College Station, TX 77843 (979)458-3969 or 845-8553 Will travel, not during winter Will tailor activities for children. [email protected] Wendy A. Born Workshop Spore propagation of ferns 6625 Barbara Dr. Sebastopol, CA 95472 Illustrated talk Identification of California Native Ferns [email protected] Bill Coblentz Fern Growing 2547 Trinidad Street Demonstration Sarasota, FL 34231 Staghorn Ferns (941) 924-9253 Patricia Cox Talk, all year. Dept. of Botany, University of Tennessee Fern Flora of the Great Smoky National Park. Foray in June to October. Knoxville, TN 37996 (865) 974-6225 Great Smoky National Park, TN or will travel [email protected] Mary Elliott 41038 S. Range Rd Southeast Fern growing and use of native plants. Ponchatoula, LA 70454 Demonstration talk 985-386-0709 [email protected] Dr. Joan Gottlieb Garden tour, spring to fall. Private fern garden tour of over 180 2310 Marbury Rd Foray spring to fall. taxa;”Temperate Ferns for all Seasons,” “Ferns Pittsburgh, PA 15221-3670 of the Ecuadoran Andes”, “Ferns of Costa Rica”, (412)242-6738 Western PA advance notice req’d “Ferns of New Zealand”, “Ferns of China”. [email protected] Prof. Warren D. Hauk Forays Dept. of Biology, Denison Liverworts, moonworts, rattlesnake ferns, unusual University Late spring and summer ferns of Hocking Hills area, Blackhand Gorge, Granville, OH 43023 Central Ohio (740) 587 5758 Central OH [email protected] Michael Heim Garden & woodland tour anytime, but 9151 N Co. Rd. ‘E’ Ferns for the north woodlands. The garden has August to September best Hayward, WI 54843 over 123 fern and fern ally species and forms, (USDA hardiness Zone 3) (715) 634-5336 both natives and exotics. North WI [email protected] James R. Horrocks 2444 Camino Way Talk, slide presentation; demonstration. Temperate ferns in semi-arid climate; spore Salt Lake City, Utah 84121 growing; ferns for Master Gardener program; Phone: (801) 942-0065 Will travel (limited) general cultivation. [email protected] Chad Husby Illustrated talk Department of Biological Sciences Searching for the giant horsetail, Equisetum Florida International University giganteum, in South America 11200 S.W. 8th St, #OE167 Demonstration Growing ferns, lycopods and horsetails in Miami, FL 33199 inorganic media (305) 348-6047 Digital projector, laptop [email protected] Page 4 u Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 Daniel D. Jones Native and non-native ferns for Southeastern 5038 Vale Lane Illustrated talk gardens Birmingham Alabama 35244 Birmingham Botanical Garden Fern Glade (May (205) 988-0480 Tour to September) [email protected] Judith Jones Fancy Fronds 40830 172nd Street SE Temperate Ferns or Xeric Ferns with the talk Illustrated talk Gold Bar, WA 98251 tailored to the audience. Inquire (360) 793-1472 [email protected] Garrie Landry Dept. of Biology Illustrated talks Subjects: Ferns of SE US, hort. interests: Pyrrosia, Univ. Louisiana Lafayette Staghorns, Selaginella, Lycopodium; & native fern PO Box 42451 gardening. Lafayette, LA 70504 (318) 828-5957 Fern forays Louisiana; Trinidad; Oaxaca, Mexico [email protected] Timothy J. McNitt Pacific Northwest (southern BC, WA, OR, PO Box 545 northern CA). Bellingham, WA 98227 Fern forays 360-714-9474 Can suggest locations [email protected] Dr. James Montgomery Foray, June to October Ecology III, 804 Salem Blvd. Ferns and fern allies of central or eastern Berwick, PA 18603 Pennsylvania (570) 543-2191 [email protected] Central and Eastern PA Dr. Robbin Moran Illustrated Talk The New York Botanical Garden th Ferns and People 200 Street & Southern Blvd. Will travel Bronx, NY 10458 Other talks: inquire 718-817-8663 Req’d: Digital projector, pointer, and screen [email protected] Sue Olsen 2003 128th Ave. S.E. Illustrated Talk Hardy Ferns Bellevue, WA 98005 425 747-2998 Garden tour May - September [email protected] David Schwartz 9715 Chirtsey Way Xeric Ferns in the Garden Bakersfield, CA 93312-5617 Illustrated talk (661) 588-4027 Companion Plants to the Xeric Fern Garden [email protected] Christine (Chris) Spindel 3985 S. Galloway Dr. Introduction to Ferns Memphis, TN 38111 Demonstration (901) 685-9835 Growing Ferns from Spores [email protected] Tom Stuart Rock Garden Ferns PO Box 517 Illustrated Talk Croton Falls, NY 10519 Pyrrosia, the Felt Ferns Digital projector req’d (845) 277-3699 [email protected] Polypods Michael Sundue The New York Botanical Garden th Illustrated Talk 200 Street & Southern Blvd. Ferns of Parque Nacional Amboro, Bolivia Digital projector req’d Bronx, NY 10458 [email protected]

Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 u Page 5 Reggie Whitehead 6880 S. W. 75 Terrace Ferns around the World: Introduction to South Miami, Florida 33143 Illustrated Talk Tropical Ferns (305) 666-0219 [email protected] Don Woods Demonstration-talk 9914 Calmada Ave. Staghorn Ferns (Platycerium) Whittier, CA 90605 (562) 698 7696 Season and travel negotiable. Dan Yansura 330 Carmel Ave Illustrated Talk Cultivating Tree Ferns Pacifica, CA 94044 650- 359-1706 Ferns of the Juan Fernandez Islands [email protected]

Morris Arboretum Fernery by Tom Stuart Last August I dropped in at the Morris Arboretum, the first visit in too many years. All in unison, now, readers who have visited the Fernery, "Too many years." Here is John Mickel in 1976, just as enamored of alliteration then as now: One of the most beautiful fern houses on the East Coast is tucked away in the Morris Arboretum outside of Philadelphia. It is time that the FF reports to the nation this fabulous fern facility. The fern conservatory is a dome- shaped pit house sunken into the ground with stone walls. This construction keeps the house more uniformly moist and avoids great fluctuations in temperature often encountered in more conventional greenhouses. Inside the conservatory is a beautiful fern garden with winding paths through wonderful rockwork that includes a lookout, so that you can gaze down on the treefern crowns, and a mysterious underground passage complete with gametophytes in various stages of development. The filmy fern grotto demands special notice. This granitic rock grotto receives very low light and is automatically misted to provide a drippy, constantly wet, high humidity environment. The grotto and its contents are viewed from a rustic wooden bridge, from which one can see a tropical filmy fern that ought to be impossible to grow in Philadelphia. This a Trichomanes species with fronds eighteen inches long! It is not just one little creepy-crawly filmy fern but a robust tropical giant. The fern house is a true marvel with 50-year old Blechnum treeferns towering head-high and a fine collection of genera and species. This display gets four stars in the Fiddlehead Forum horticultural guide book. The Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania in northwestern Philadelphia was the estate of John and Lydia Morris, begun in the 1880s. The Fernery, a Victorian eight-sided glass house was completed in 1899. After a century with considerable deterioration, it was completely rebuilt fifteen years ago. No, the Trichomanes is gone, but it's still chock full of splendid, mainly subtropical ferns, particularly strong with Adiantum. The one I coveted most was a common enough species, Phlebodium aureum, but in the cultivar 'Mandaianum' a glaucous blue to savor. Perhaps there is another fern house in North America up to this standard, but it has not been brought to my attention. The curator is Shelley Dillard and she will be glad to answer your questions. Offers We can all promote the American Fern Society whenever we gather with known or closeted fern enthusiasts. I have brochures for the asking. Take some along on your next field trip or foray. Barbara Joe Hoshizaki's CD, How to Collect Fern Spores, offered last year, made many members happy. You could be too. Just ask. The Fiddlehead Forum welcomes new perspectives. Do you have a fern fantasy to tell? First time contributors sometimes need a jiggle or a joggle: there is a must have fern waiting for you. Write to me. Tom Stuart, [email protected]

Page 6 u Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 2009 Fern Societies in the USA by Tom Stuart Fern Society Web Site Postal Contact Activities Meeting Place Email Contact Austin Fern & Cycad Society Austin Fern & Cycad %Dr. Yvonne Baron Estes Society [email protected] Monthly meetings PO Box 92304 Austin, Texas Austin, TX 78709 Monthly meetings: President program or field trip Birmingham Fern Society Birmingham Fern Society ( Jan-Nov) Birmingham Botanical [email protected] Birmingham Botanical Gardens Annual fern lecture Gardens 2612 Lane Park Road (May) Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham, AL 35223 Annual show and sale ( June) Delaware Valley Fern and Delaware Valley Fern and http://www.dvfws.org/ Wildflower Society 1-2 lectures/yr Wildflower Society % Alice-Blake Simonson Field trips Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [email protected] 28 Chancery Court Souderton, PA 18964 Annual lecture, Hardy Fern Foundation http://www.hardyferns.org/ Hardy Fern Foundation publications, Seattle, Washington P.O. Box 3797 spore exchange, [email protected] Federal Way, WA 98036 demonstration gardens Los Angeles International Los Angeles International Fern Monthly meetings http://laifs.org/ (not Fern Society Society current) Arboretum of Los Angeles % Jenifer Chungafung Annual show and sale County P.O. Box 90943 in June [email protected] Arcadia, California Pasadena, CA 91109-0943 Louisiana Fern and Tropical http://louisianafernsociety. Louisiana Fern Society Monthly meetings Plant Society org/ %Wes Gladhart Univ. of New Orleans 4600 Neyrey Drive Occasional field trips Lakefront Campus [email protected] Metairie, LA 70002 Memphis Fern Society Memphis Fern Society Monthly meetings % Christine Spindel Memphis Botanic Garden [email protected] 3985 S. Galloway Dr. Memphis, Tennessee Summer fern forays Memphis, TN 38111-6841 New York Fern Society New York Fern Society Monthly meetings % John Mickel New York Botanical Garden [email protected] New York Botanical Garden Bronx, New York Summer fern forays Bronx, NY 10458 San Diego Fern Society Monthly meetings San Diego Fern Society http://sdfern.com (not c/o Ms. Amna Cornett Balboa Park current) 3905 Ibis Street Annual Show and Sale San Diego, California [email protected] San Diego CA 92103 in August

Sarasota Fern Society http://sarasotafernsociety. Sarasota Fern Society Marie Selby Botanical com %Marie Selby Botanical Gardens Monthly meetings Gardens president@ 811 South Palm Ave. Sarasota, Florida sarasotafernsociety.com Sarasota, FL 34236

Fiddlehead Forum u Jan-Mar 2009 u Page 7 Dr. Joan E. N. Hudson Sam Houston State University Department of Biological Science Box 2116 Huntsville, TX 77341-2116

Fern Society Web Site Postal Contact Activities Meeting Place Email Contact Southwestern Fern Society Southwestern Fern Society http://nhg.com/ % Don Miller, North Haven Gardens North Haven Gardens, 7700 Monthly meetings Dallas, Texas [email protected] Northaven Road Dallas, Texas 75230 Texas Gulf Coast Fern Society Texas Gulf Coast Fern http://www.tgcfernsoc.org/ %Houston Garden Center Society Hermann Park Monthly meetings Houston, Texas [email protected] 1500 Hermann Drive Houston, Texas 77044 Tropical Fern & Exotic Monthly meetings Plant Society http://www.tfeps.org/ Tropical Fern & Exotic Plant Society Fairchild Tropical Botanic 6880 S. W. 75 Terrace Annual show and sale Garden [email protected] South Miami, FL 33143 in June Coral Gables, Florida

Have we missed your Fern Society? Please provide your information and we will include your society in a subsequent issue. We are always interested in what you are up to. We welcome submissions of happenings in your Fern Society.

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