I believe I am correct in saying that all ferns are perennial. I don’t know which one yours is.

Well worth potting up and putting in your yard. I have these and others but I have a difficult time ID-ing many of them. It should certainly return for you.

Okay great!

Main thing is the perennial part. I wanted something that would show up and get larger every season and possibly spread.

Name isn't as important, at least now I can be sure it's a 'Fern' anyways. :-)

It's my understanding these will enjoy shade?

Ferns grew wild at my old place, in almost wet areas and iirc: were understory plants.

Yes Bill perfectly suited to moist soil and yes even wet depending on the fern. They grow in my forest at the edges and have gotten rather exuberant in my garden beds. I adore all ferns. My favorite is Adiantum pedatum - Northern maidenhair fern. It is native for both of us. I would be between Minneapolis and St. Cloud due east.

p.s. Just get it planted before fall or heel in the pot for winter.

Okay thanks!

I'm NW of St. Cloud about 1-1/2 hours.

Most likely Cystopteris fragilis

From all the Ferns native to Minnesota, this one matches more criteria than the rest and is one of the most common ferns in this part of the State.

It can stay in the pot until I get the planting site ready. :)

Could be Cinnamon fern (Osmundastrum cinnamomeum). Range:

When trying to ID fern species, it is often necessary to observe the undersides of the fronds.

if its a rogue seedling ... might it not be best to put it out where it might seed more ... or spore.. or whatever its called .. lol ...

ken

Osmundastrum cinnamomeum = nope.

Fuzzy hairs on the Fiddle heads and stems are absent.

Jay.

What should I be seeing? Keep in mind this is a juvenile plant.

Why is that Ken? Ferns are motile and thus are all rogues .

The plant ended up in the shade of some lilacs and fence (left of the Taxus canadensis on the right), where it gets about 2 hours or so of direct sun daily and dappled light for a few hours. It's a smaller specimen but so far it seems to enjoy it there, so does the Taxus.

I plan on getting a much larger fern species (unknown species) that I noticed growing out on my land in the country. I'll put that in the bare spot in front of the Taxus.

Anyone know if it's better to dig ferns in the Fall or should I wait until spring?

You can do either but spring is ideal once the new growth begins (fiddleheads emerge).

If quite large it could be Matteuccia struthiopteris -Ostrich fern.

Thanks!

Looking at some resources here (https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/page/ferns-and-fern-allies), It could very well be 'Ostrich'. There may be 'Lady Fern' present here too (Athyrium filix-femina).

I've noticed several different species of Fern at my old place. Some quite large. The fiddleheads will tell a lot. I'll try to post some pictures of the ones I bring home next spring. :-)

I suggest moving ferns in the fall. It's really easy to damage the fiddleheads in the spring, and if they're fully emerged, they often end up quite tattered-looking during the season after transplanting.

When you move ferns in the Fall, do you have to wait until the fronds are completely dead?

The reason I ask is, if I wait for woody plants to go dormant, then it's too late in the season and too close to freeze up to move them.

"When you move ferns in the Fall, do you have to wait until the fronds are completely dead?"

No. I would probably get a move on it now, looking at your zone. Here in zone 5, the rule of thumb is end of October cut off for transplanting to allow enough time (~6+ weeks) before the onset of frozen ground for growth of roots to help anchor the plant and ensure winter survival. Frost isn't a problem, but frozen ground is. I've planted/tranplanted into November successfully when I was about 25-ish miles east = one zone higher, but not at this place. Anyway, I don't know what your conditions are like up in MN and when the ground freezes, but I imagine its earlier than here.

Ok thanks.

I'll get back to you.

We've been getting our first killing frost middle of Oct. these last few years, instead of mid september like it used to be. Ground freeze comes sometime in November.

This is about as late as I dare plant to be safe.

Here's what i got.

Should I mulch the rhizome for winter (cover it completely)?

Sorry I can't post more, my pc died.

Lost everything..

I'll get that fixed and return with more info.

PC is in the shop but I'll try to do this using my phone.

I believe my transplant is an ostridge fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris).

The large, multi-frond plants marked earlier in the season for transplanting, were so dead and brown by the time I got there, I wasn't sure if they would grow again (we've had severe drought all summer).

So I went to another area where smaller plants (3-4 fronds) were growing and dug one of those.

Not sure if the latter are the same plants as my original picks.

The one l planted has the grooved 'celery' stalks and single veins on the leaf underside. Here's a leaf growing next to where I dug.

I also dug one of the larger, dead brown specimens just to see if it revives next season.

My goal was to acquire a larger fern that grows with the 'vase' form. So no matter what kind it is, I'll be fine with it. :-)

Interesting side note.

When you look under 'bracken fern' Pteridium aquilinum it shows a large area of minnesota marked in red, as extinct, including my county.

As far as I can tell, I have bracken ferns on my land.

https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/page/ferns-and-fern-allies

Bracken is a common weed throughout Oz, invading native plant areas, gardens, riparian zones, practically everywhere. From my reading, it grows in the USA from southern Alaska to northern Mexico, so I doubt that it's in any danger of extinction soon!

I was surprised to see that red area on the map, made me think there must've been a mistake.

I tried to contact them but their email link was inoperatve.

If they are extinct, that will make the ones on my land worth more. ;-)

Here ya go, Bill. Help yourself to some of ours!

Thanks!

I was going to ask what kind of Ferns you have there.

The ostridge fern is about as big as they get in these parts, maybe 4-5 ft. long fronds with 10 to 12 fronds per plant.

I'll bet you have some really large specimens down there?

Well, my favourites are the glorious tree ferns, but there are many others...

Australian Ferns

Tree ferns? That would be something to see. Nothing like that around here. The Dinosaurs must've loved them.

Thanks for sharing those.

Tree Ferns are gorgeous.

Here in the UK you can buy, at most garden centres, Dicksonia antarctica, the soft tree fern or man fern.

I am sorry to say this, but I get VERY p****ed off, and angry. These are, I admit, collected under licences issued by, usually, the Victoria Forestry, and also, I believe, Tasmania Forestry.

They are, to all intents and purposes, the by-product of clear felling, often of old growth forests.

It is the only species that can be propagated from stem sections.

Large specimens (5m-15m) can be several hundred years old, with growth rates of up to 5cm/yr.

Here in Cornwall there are quite a few old specimens, many of which arrived here in the 1800s as ballast in ships returning from Australia.

Cyathea australis (Rough Tree Fern) Bunya Mountains, Qld

Dicksonia antarctica, Trelissick Gardens, Cornwall

Fof

Update:

The original plant in this post which I believe is Cystopteris fragilis, came back nicely after winter.

The second fern that I planted in the destination bed appears to be Matteuccia struthiopteris and is growing nicely.

And the dead, dry clumps that I dug and put along the side of the shed are apparently Osmunda cinnamomea, a pleasant surprise for me ending up with three different species. :-)

Nice ferns. The Ostrich is one of the easier ones to id due to it's shuttlecock growth habit. There was some discussion of Bracken above. That's also easy to id because it has branches. Fronds do not rise directly from the ground.

I'm a big fan of ferns although I know nothing about them and can only name a handful. In my cool, shady, damp garden they're really useful.

My smallest is Wall Rue Spleen Wort, which planted itself in the front wall of the house. It's about 2 inches across.

I don't have anything you could call damp around here, except my watering can. But if they can come back from drought conditions like those I dug from the woods, I'll give them a try and see how they do. :-)

Time for an update! :-)

The (what I think is) Cystopteris fragilis has grown better since putting the rock by it. I read somewhere they like to grow on rocks and I originally found it growing from under a larger rock that is part of the foundation of one of my sheds. I added a few more rocks just to see if that might cause it to spread.

The ostrich fern Matteuccia struthiopteris is putting up new fronds. I didn't realize they do that mid-season. It probably would like more water than it gets but I try to get over to this area every day or two (or three) because I have Taxus canadensis (just behind fern with chicken wire) just planted last summer that I'm hoping will do okay once established.

The Osmunda cinnamomea has produced 'cinnamon'. It doesn't look exactly like www pictures but I don't know of any other fern that grows here that has the strange brown growths on it. (Looks like possibly a fourth variety of fern coming in at the right side at the base).

The little one at the base looks like Onoclea sensibilis, Sensitive Fern.

Thanks floral. I've seen something like this in the wild but couldn't think of the name. Onoclea sensibilis is known to have a fairly dense population in my county so that very well could be it.

The cinnamon fern has been growing in mostly shade with an hour or so direct light around noon, the lilacs will sometimes dapple the light depending on which way the hedge leans after a wind. :-)

The ostrich fern gets more (2-3 hours afternoon sun).

Speaking of Braken ferns, I was on some bike trails an hour or so from my place and saw brakens almost continuously along the countryside over a large area.

That’s Bracken, with a C.

Bill I would separate the Onoclea before it gets any larger. They have a strong rhizomatous root system.

Thanks! Probably a good idea. I'll see if I can't do it without destroying something. lol

Love all ferns. Here in Virginia, especially the evergreen ones—Christmas fern, Autumn fern, Hart’s Tongue, Tassel fern, Holly fern, etc. Here’s my Hart’s Tongue fern with undivided fronds. So cool

The third one might be interrupted fern (Osmunda claytoniana) if the brown sori are in the middle of a stalk with "leafy" growth.

Harts Tongue is abundant locally here. Completely evergreen.

Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) is probably our most common evergreen fern in Virginia

You nailed it birdquill!

Osmunda claytoniana is abundant in my county.

I had wondered why the fronds were normal at the lower part of the stem, then turned brown in the middle, then went normal again to the top. btw: those are waist high already.

Interupted fern...brilliant! :-)

FWIW: I tried to follow the stem on the Onoclea sensibilis and found it went directly into the base of O. claytoniana and when I tried to separate the base a little to find the rhizome, the stem broke. I don't want it growing like that anyways and if I need more, I know where to find them. ;-)

9-4-22

Just a note:

I found the Osmunda claytoniana was the most drought tolerant of the above-mentioned species. The ostrich and the fragilis have long since turned brown, even with frequent irrigation.

But the somewhat neglected interrupted fern is looking great. It does get more shade than the ostrich, but the ostrich got way more water. Still green and healthy looking this far into the season.

Cystopteris fragilis (brittle bladder fern) returned again this season.

I've tried to emulate the conditions it thrives in, shade, moist, rocks. It appears to be spreading more at the base. :-)

Matteuccia Struthiopteris: (ostrich fern). Part sun, moist.

Osmunda Claytoniana: (interrupted fern) Mostly shade, moist to dry, unattended for the most part.

:-)

9-7-2023: update.

The Cystopteris Fragilis died during this very dry year, even though I watered it several times.

I just couldn't keep up this year with the water.

Interestingly enough, the location where I dug this fern from sprounted new grow (from roots?). I didn't water this one at all but it is growing under the roof edge of the shed so even when a heavy dew occurs, water drips down a couple inches from where it stands.

p.s. the other two ferns are goners unless they come back on their own next season.

I would not count them out, ferns are pretty tough.

5-30-2024:

The Osmunda Claytoniana came back albeit weakly on its own after a near rainless summer.

Giving more credibility to its drought hardiness.

The Matteuccia Struthiopteris (ostrich fern) and the Cystopteris Fragilis in the spot I transplanted it did not.

Osmunda Claytoniana:

I'm done with ferns. With my very poor, sandy soil and summer dry spells, it's just too much work and time to keep these going.

Funny thing, the Cystopteris Fragilis came back in the original spot where I found it and has sprouted a new one between the next 2 rocks. Pretty good considering I weed whip along the side of this shed and have a time or two, sprayed to keep the grass down.

;-)

6-5-26:

Claytosmunda Claytoniana: Interrupted Fern.

A little natural rain and it's establishing itself with no help from me. 😏
It's been a little on the dry side.