Ferns and Tree Ferns

Deep shade defeats most flowering plants. The south-facing courtyard, the strip under a deck, the ground beneath an established canopy where nothing has held on: these are the positions ferns are for. Two layers are on offer here. Tree ferns carry height and a canopy of their own in a narrow footprint, which is what makes them feature plants. The smaller ground and epiphytic ferns fill the layer underneath, softening fence lines, retaining walls and pot groupings. Stock runs from 70mm tubes through to 400L, and the soft tree fern is also sold by trunk height, from 20-30 cm up to 150-160 cm, so an established trunk reads as mature on day one. Prices start at $16.95.

For structure, Soft Tree Fern - Dicksonia antarctica is the cool-climate option, slow growing, with a thick fibrous trunk that holds water and takes cold better than the others here. Tree Fern - Cyathea australis has a rougher, darker trunk and copes with more open positions, provided the soil stays damp. Tree Fern - Cyathea cooperi gains trunk height in a few seasons rather than a decade, which suits a warm humid garden that needs cover sooner, though it is frost tender and self-sows into bushland in some districts. For the ground and mounted layer, Bird's Nest Fern - Asplenium australasicum forms a wide glossy rosette for a pot, a courtyard bed or a fork in a tree, and Birds Nest Fern - Asplenium nidus fills the same role in warmer gardens, being the less cold tolerant of the two. Elkhorn Fern - Platycerium Netherlands is grown mounted on a board or trunk rather than planted in soil. Polystichum proliferum Fern - Mother Shield is the hardy understorey filler. Dwarf Tree Fern - Blechnum gibbum Silver Lady stays compact enough for containers and verandah corners, and Sword Fern - Nephrolepis Boston Blue Bell suits the same spots, though it runs from the base and is best kept in a pot or a contained bed in warm coastal gardens, where it can escape into bushland.

Ferns want shelter first, shade second and humidity third. Give them a position screened from wind, soil kept damp and open with leaf litter or a coarse mulch, and filtered light or early morning sun only. Feed lightly, since heavy fertiliser can burn new fronds. What ruins them in Australian gardens is dry wind and direct sun. A hot northerly crisps the fronds brown in an afternoon, and an exposed western wall does the same slowly all summer, which is why a struggling fern is usually in the wrong spot rather than short of feed. The tree fern version is specific. The trunk carries the root mass, so it has to be watered directly, down the trunk and into the crown, not just at the base. A trunk allowed to dry right out stops pushing fronds and rarely recovers.

To build out the same shaded beds, see tropical plants for broadleaf foliage that takes the same conditions, indoor plants if the position is a bright bathroom or a covered atrium, and low maintenance or shop all plants to compare the wider range. Every order ships farm-direct with flat $99 delivery across QLD, NSW, VIC, SA, ACT and WA, a $399 minimum order, and the 30-Day Healthy Plant Guarantee.