With curve stems and delicate leave-taking , fern are a must for adding lush texture to the shade garden . Mostfernsspread easy , so they are a democratic selection for planting under Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree or for filling other large shady areas of the garden . But their just form and lacy fronds make an unbelievable addition to your wraith containers . We have two great style to use fern in container gardens . Scroll on to learn about each !
Idea #1: Keep a container thrilling with fabulous fern foliage
With leaves like this , who need flowers ? This Australian sword fern is the thriller of this container . The productive red tone trifle against the lucullan immature palette and provide gloss all season long . Texture play an important persona in this container , too . The average - sized leaf of the red coleus form a focal level that ’s set off by the fine textures of the fern , the creeping Jenny and the give chase flame nettle . The large leave of the elephant ear , as well as the bulk of the grim , whole container , keep the overall effect from being too “ fussy ” and messy .
How do you keep a combination of plants from look too busy ? Choose a couple of main colors and be certain that all the plants adhere to that color pallet . Here , the dark red is peck up in all the flame nettle leaves and the ribs of the elephant ’s auricle leave . A sparkle of yellow green is scatter across the container to brighten it , both in the creeping Jenny and the edgings of the coleus cultivars .
Pinch back the coleus as needed in midsummer to keep them neat and succinct so they do n’t take over the container .
Fern & coleus container recipe (number to plant)
A ) Australian sword fern(Nephrolepis obliterata‘Emerald Queen ’ ) ( 1)B ) Coleus(Plectranthus‘Redhead ’ ) ( 3)C ) Elephant ear(Colocasia‘Coffee Cups ’ ) ( 1)D ) Coleus(Plectranthus‘Strawberry Drop ’ ) ( 1)E ) Coleus(Plectranthus‘Trailing Plum ’ ) ( 3)F ) Coleus(Plectranthus‘Kong Jr. ™ Scarlet ’ ) ( 1)G ) crawl Jenny(Lysimachia nummularia‘Aurea ’ ) ( 1)Container is 22 in . square
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Idea #2: Fill out your container with a spunky green fern
Although ferns are often a quiet background for other plants , sometimes they like to take center level . This chartreuse Boston fern is like a ray of sunshine spilling out from the container . It contrasts nicely with the dark purple of the pitch-dark varnish industrial plant and the deep red colored caladium .
Tip the Boston fern forwards somewhat when planting so that it weight out . This way the fern leaves will get to out and over slightly and keep growing that direction — rather of in toward the other plants where it could start to take over .
site this container in a post with sunup sun to get the bright coloring from all these plants and to keep the geranium blooming .
Fern & caladium container recipe (number to plant)
A ) Boston fern(Nephrolepis exaltataRita ’s Gold ™ ) ( 1)B ) Caladium(Caladium‘Freida Hemple ’ ) ( 1)C ) Black varnish plant(Pseuderanthemum atropurpureum‘Rubrum ’ ) ( 1)D ) Caladium(Caladium‘Raspberry Moon ’ ) ( 1)E ) Geranium(Pelargonium‘Persian Queen ’ ) ( 1)F ) English ivy(Hedera helix‘Gold Child ’ ) ( 1)Container is 16 in . in diam
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