Description

Smyrnium pefoliatum

This is a slightly unusual umbellifer, sort of like an umbellifer doing an impression of a Euphorbia. When it flowers in early spring, the effect is a gorgeous blend of lime and yellow that positively glows. Flower arrangers love it as it also cuts well. Unfortunately , it is monocarpic, ie it takes one or two years to build up sufficient size before it flowers in it last hurrah before dying. However it does seed around reliably so never cut all the flowers, leave some to set seed ! A native of Southern Europe, as far as Czechoslovakia as was. The name Smyrnium was used by Dioscorides and comes from the Greek smyrna, meaning Myrrh, a reference to the smell of the plants. Closely related to Alexanders, a herb once grown extensively as a celery substitute but now more often found naturalised at the roadside.

Ferns

The cultivation of ferns is a huge subject, way beyond the scope of the few words I will write here. However I’ll do my best to give some notes on each genus and its peculiarities of cultivation and any other information that strikes me as interesting.

The craze for growing ferns originates in the Victorian age, gaining momentum in the latter half of the 19^th Century. Fuelled by and explosion of literature Victorians went forth into the countryside to study and collect native specimens by the armful. Just as there was huge interest, so a multitude of varieties and variations were spotted, collected and names. Many, many are now lost, but some still remain and can frequently be identified by the now outlawed Latinised cultivar names such as Polystichum setiferum ‘Plumosum Densum’.

Whilst most ferns enjoy moisture and a soil that never dries out completely, the requirement for water is not as necessary as many might believe. In fact, the list of ferns that enjoy a boggy site is probably much smaller than a list of those that will tolerate a dry site. Athyrium, Osmunda and Matteuccia are amongst the wettest lovers. Try these pages for more information on moisture requirements.

A generalisation would be that ferns like a fertile soil with good drainage. Many grow very well on shady banks. They frequently do best in bright shade, with most ferns being able to take a reasonable amount of sun providing that they do not endure full sun during the middle of the day. Asplenium is perhaps the most notable exception, with its leaves sometimes scorching.

As regards PH, most ferns will grow quite happily in any soil that doesn’t have and extreme of either acidity or alkalinity. If you were to rank them, Dryopteris, Athyrium and Osmunda would prefer a soil on the acid side, with Polystichum and Asplenium preferring it alkaline. This however should be taken a s a guide not a strict prescription.

So to sum up, provided you can avoid a sunny South facing bank, or dry site on sand, you are likely to have success with ferns in a wide range of positions and soils. You might like to look at the following two pages to help refine your choices.

Polystichum

A large genus of mostly evergreen ferns, many suited to dry sites. Many form substantial clumps of highly decorative fronds up to 90cm across. Whilst most are evergreen it usually pays to remove all of the old fronds just as you see the new ones unfurling as the scaly nature and beautiful geometry of the new fronds is one of the joys of the Spring garden.

A little lime in the soil can be beneficial to the growth of polystichums. Avoid waterlogging.

Polystichum derives from the Greek ‘Polys’ = many and ‘stichos’ = row’, referring to the many rows of spore carrying sori.