Re: Fall Planting of ferns

Hi Nancy:

I've moved ferns successfully in September through mid-October. I attempt to
dig up as much rootball as I can (watering around the plant before you dig
will help). I cut off the tops, most of which are brown and dead anyway. I
plop them in their new location and water well. The secret, I believe, is
keeping them well watered right up to the first hard freeze.

Silver maple? It's a weed tree. Unfortunately, too many homeowners plant
them because they grow fast. But they break easy in high wind; their roots
play havoc with anything you attempt to plant around them because they suck
up moisture and nutrients.

Most plants don't do well around silver maple. There are those that will
survive but they rarely make good growth.

As a nurseryman now retired, I've seen too many futile efforts to create a
nice shade garden around a silver maple. It's best to allow grass to grow
(if it will grow lushly). Or you can build a raised bed around the tree (I
suggest a minimum of 3 feet out from the trunk and 6-8 inches deep; any more
could damage the tree's root system). Even then, the plants in the raised
beds have to do some battle with the "weed".

Plants should do well around a birch. It's a kinder, gentler tree.

John Adney
Marion, Iowa (on the line of zones 4-5)

-----Original Message-----
From: Nancy S. Shlaes <nsshlaes@AMERITECH.NET>
To: shadegardens@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU <shadegardens@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Date: Wednesday, September 15, 1999 3:29 PM
Subject: [SG] Fall Planting of ferns


>I have belatedly decided to put in a big patch of ferns under a birch (
>and also under a silver maple tree).
>
>Two questions:
>
>1)  How late can this be done in Chicago suburbs (zone 5)?   Or should I
>wait until Spring?
>2)  Will they be all right under the silver maple?  What else can you
>knowledgeable shade people suggest to put under the silver maple with
>them (or without them)/
>
>As always, thanks for sharing your experience.
>
>Nancy Shlaes deGrazia
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