Kansas Native Ferns

Posted on May 10, 2019 by Katie Schmidt

At FloraKansas Native Plant Festival our customers were surprised to see we offer Kansas native ferns. Perhaps they were surprised to hear Kansas even had native ferns! With our hot, dry summers and deep-freeze winters, Kansas does not seem like hospitable environment for delicate, shade loving plants. However, we have several naturally occurring fern species in the state that are hardier than you might think. They are fascinating to observe growing in the wild, but also make excellent additions to your shade garden.

Royal Fern

Osmunda regalis var spectabilis

According to fossil records, the royal fern family (Osmundaceae) dates back about 365 million years. 3 to 4 feet tall (shorter in poor, drier soil), this fern becomes a large and impressive specimen in the shade garden. O. regalis var spectabilis grows happily in the far eastern part of Kansas and throughout the eastern third of North America. Royal fern has attractive bright green foliage and rust colored spore plumes. It prefers moist, somewhat acidic soil and shade though it can handle sun if the soil is kept wet. This fern can live up to 100 years if planted in the right location!

Royal fern is an easterly species, occurring from the Ozarks through the southeastern US and north into eastern Canada.

Christmas Fern

Polystichum acrostichoides

This festive native fern grows in far southeastern Kansas. According to Missouri Botanical Garden, it “…typically grows in a fountain-like clump to 2′ tall and features leathery, lance-shaped, with evergreen (green at Christmas time as the common name suggests) fronds.” If you love boston ferns but want something perennial, this is a great option. When planted in an average moisture, shaded area it will spread slowly to form a colony.

If you are up for some botanizing, head to these southeastern counties in moist, partially wooded areas to catch a glimpse of these ferns.

Sensitive Fern

Onoclea sensibilis

Onoclea is unique native fern, with arching fronds and oblong, creeping rhizomes. Getting its name from sensitivity to frost, O. sensibilis is surprisingly hardy. It can easily survive the cold dry winters in Kansas, Nebraska and even the Dakotas. This species is native to the eastern half of North America as well as far eastern Russia and China. According to Wikipedia, you can help your ferns survive the winter by leaving dried fronds on the plant instead of clearing them away.

There are many more native ferns I could include here, from the marginal woodfern found in Wilson, Elk, and Greenwood counties to the tiny rock ferns growing among the monoliths at Rock City in Minneapolis, KS. Get out and do some fern hunting, or buy a few at our fall sale to enjoy for years to come.

Can A Shade Garden Be Created In Kansas?

Posted on July 5, 2018 by Scott Vogt

“I have shade in my yard, what can I grow?” We get this question every year at our FloraKansas Plant Festivals and I admit it is a challenge to come up with plants that will thrive in shade. The difficulty with trying to grow shade plants in our area in not that we have shade, it’s that we have shade in an area that once grew sun loving deep rooted prairie plants. Trees have been added to our landscapes out of necessity and the prairie has been pushed out due to lack of adequate sunlight. The inconsistent rainfall and root competition of the trees are a real challenge to shade-loving perennials, shrubs and understory trees.

So what can we do to create a shade garden?

Start small

Choose drought tolerant shade loving plants. These new additions to your shade garden should be smaller and don’t require digging a deep hole and disturbing tree roots to get them in the ground. Establish an area that can easily be managed and maintained the first couple of years. Keep in mind that root competition and irregular rainfall will require consistent moisture from you the first year until the new plants can weave their roots through the tree roots and live in harmony together.

Be patient

This is not a quick fix. The roots of your shade plants develop slowly so you need to watch and wait to see what these plants need. The first two years are vital to the success of your shade garden endeavor. You will need to water them regularly to encourage growth. Work with the plants to create an environment in which they will thrive. Your patience will be rewarded with new blooms several years into the future, but you have to start now to see this happen.

Forms and textures are important

Let face it, there are not as many showy flowering plants for the shade compared to the vast array of sun loving prairie plants. So, we need to include plants with interesting forms and foliage. A good example of this are the arching stems of Solomon’s seal. A group of these growing happily together are very striking. Incorporate plants that flower but don’t forget the architecture that give additional visual interest. Great shade gardens have a balance of flowers and foliage.

Arching stems of Solomon’s Seal

Don’t fertilize

Leave the leaves as protection and organic matter. As the leaves decompose, they will supply nutrients to the fledgling plants. The natural processes that make a woodland work effortlessly need to be replicated as closely as possible. Woodland plant communities rely on the nutrients from the canopy and twigs that are slowly broken down and released back to the soil. Too much fertilizer creates all kinds of problems, but the most obvious is too much growth with not enough sustainable roots.

CLICK HERE: For a list of shade loving perennials and shrubs.

Trees in Kansas are a blessing, not a curse. We enjoy the shade, but often struggle to find the right plants for that barren shady spot under the trees. Some properly chosen plants and some patience along with timely watering will make your woodland garden more natural and resilient over time. The roots of the trees and roots of the shade plants co-mingle in our soil, sunlight and climate. Even the most tranquil forest settings we have seen have complex processes and interactions taking place. So, be patient and you will be rewarded with happy plants for years to come.

A Native Shade Garden

Posted on January 18, 2017 by Scott Vogt

In Kansas, the benefits of shade are obvious. If you step outside on a summer afternoon, you will quickly move under the canopy of a large shade tree. The sun can be intense. We love the shade that trees provide, as well as the value they add to our homes. However, it can be a real challenge to grow anything under the umbrella of trees, including grass.

How do you develop a resilient native shade garden? Here are some steps that might improve this problematic area in your yard and maybe begin to change your approach to gardening in the shade.

Native Columbine

Shade can be bad

Realize the challenges of a shady spot

The root competition
Too much leaf litter and debris
Reduced air movement make it difficult to establish a beautiful landscape
Plants rarely bloom
Not as many plants to choose from compared to sunny areas
Plants grow slowly

Shade can be good

Since we love the trees in our landscapes, we need to embrace the microclimate they provide.

Shady landscapes are easy to care for since they require minimal weeding and watering.
Generally, there are fewer insect problems.
The canopy of the trees protects plants from leaf scorch.
Each autumn, a new set of leaves fall, providing winter protection for plants and a fresh dose of organic matter for the soil as the leaves decompose.

Soil and Sun Levels

Discover the type of soil you have and the amount of sunlight your area receives each day. Each of these factors will determine which plants to choose.

Three to five hours of sun each day is considered partial shade. This can be dappled shade where there is always some light making it through the trees branches
Two hours or less of sun each day is full shade.
A soil that is friable is usually high in organic matter. This type of soil is ideal for most plants that grow in the shade.
A sandy soil that is hard and dries quickly is typically found under oak and maple trees with dense shade.

The Arboretum woodland garden

Use Nature As Your Guide

One of the best ways to landscape for shade is to mimic nature. Look at examples from woodland settings, then integrate the elements and plants you like the most. Generally, these landscapes are random and informal with three to four distinct layers of plants. Large trees make up the upper canopy that provide the majority of shade. Next, smaller trees and large shrubs of varying heights make up the understory. Use this plant layer to add interesting forms, textures and blooms. Redbuds and viburnums, for example, are naturals for these areas. The woodland floor is the final layer. Lower growing woody and herbaceous species with graceful blooms, a variety of leaf shapes, attractive fruits and seed heads, varying heights and forms, and contrasting bright and dark colors will add to the appeal of this layer as you view it up close.

Carex pensylvanica. Photo Courtesy Hoffman Nursery, Inc.

The starting point for your shade garden is to examine what is already growing. Most shade gardens have the umbrella of large trees. The middle and ground floor need to be filled with appropriate plant material that match the soil, moisture levels and amount of sunlight the area receives throughout the day. Shade gardens lend themselves to solitude because they are usually enclosed by plants . They are a natural oasis with a bench, water feature or fire pit surrounded by interesting plants. Here is a plant guide for each of these lower tiers of a shade garden. For our purposes, I will focus on plants for a medium to dry soil, with the ultimate goal to develop an area that is attractive to you and wildlife, such as birds and pollinators.

Native perennials for the Woodland Floor

Allium cernuum pink nodding onion
Anthyrium angustum lady fern
Aquilegia canadensis columbine
Arisaema triphyllum jack-in-the-pulpit
Aruncus dioicus goatsbeard
Asarum canadense wild ginger
Aster cordifolius blue woodland aster
Aster divaricatus ‘Eastern Star’ white woodland aster
Aster lateriflorus calico Aster
Carex sp. Woodland sedge
Clematis virginiana virgin’s bower
Chasmanthium latifolium river oats (Use with caution)
Chrysogonum virginianum green and gold
Dennstaedtia punctilobula hay-scented fern
Dicentra eximia fringed bleeding heart
Dodecatheon meadia shootingstar
Epimedium spp. barrenwort
Geranium maculatum wild geranium
Heuchera Americana alumroot
Histrix patula bottlebrush grass
Pachysandra procumbens Allegheny spurge
Packera aurea golden ragwort
Phlox divaricata woodland phlox
Podophyllum peltatum May apple
Polygonatum biflorum giant solomon’s seal
Sanguinaria canadensis bloodroot
Sedum ternatum wild stonecrop
Smilacina racemose solomon’s Plume
Solidago caesia wreath goldenrod
Solidago ulmifolia elm-leaf goldenrod
Stylophorum diphyllum celadine poppy
Tiarella cordifolia foamflower
Veronicastrum virginicum culver’s root
Zizia aurea golden alexander

Golden Ragwort

Small trees and shrubs

Aesculus glabrra var. argute Texas buckeye
Aronia melanocarpa ‘Autumn Magic’
Cercis canadensis-redbud
Cephalanthus occidentalis buttonbush
Cornus racemosa gray dogwood
Hamamelis witchhazel
Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’
Hydrangea quercifolia oakleaf hydrangea
Lindera benzoin spicebush
Physocarpus opulifolius ninebark
Rjus typhina ‘Bailtiger’ Tiger Eye sumac
Symphoricarpos albus snowberry
Viburnum dentatum arrowwood viburnum
Viburnum prunifoium blackhaw viburnum
Viburnum rufidulum rusty blackhaw viburnum
Viburnum trilobum highbush cranberry

My shade garden project: I started with a fire pit under a 50 year old pin oak tree. It is essentially bare soil because nothing will grow under it very well. I will chart the progress over the next few years.

So, my advice to you is this: Accept your shady situation. Mix it up. Combine plants with different textures, colors, shapes and heights to add interest. Knowing your light levels will help, too. Keep in mind that shade plants grow slowly. Choose larger plants initially to install or just be patient with what you have planted. Water as needed, but remember these shade plants are competing with the roots of a large tree. Maybe add a soaker hose to deliver moisture efficiently to the root zone. And finally, look to enhance all the layers of the shade garden, not just the lowest level. A native garden looks better when it mirrors the natural woods with all three dimensions growing harmoniously together.