This native fern thrives in shady , moist arena .

Although their brilliant green color is a delectation to behold , fern are more unremarkably develop for the intriguing grain and fogginess they impart to a garden space . Cinnamon fernadds an additional visual to the mix ; it wear erect , spore - bearing prolific frondsin other spring that apace turn from green into a contrasting ghost of brown . After shedding their spores in late summertime , the fertile fronds break back . foggy fiddleheads ( which can be make and eaten like Asparagus officinales ) emerge from the al-Qaida of the industrial plant , later develop into graciously curve green frond ( from 2 to 4 feet long ) that spread outwards to produce a canopy . They ’ll glisten all summer long before turning yellow and dying back for the winter .

Where to Plant Cinnamon Fern

marvellous , elegant cinnamon fern features large , bright green fronds that spread out to mold a vase - physique clump . The fronds result enough way for contrast underplantings such as spotteddeadnettle .

Cinnamon fern looks particularly at home in wet areas beside ponds , streams , and water gardens , which roleplay toits erotic love of damp soil . It also grows well in shaded border , woodland garden , aboriginal plant gardens , and bogs . You probably wo n’t find this fern at a local nursery or big box store because it ’s not a domesticize landscape gardening staple . ( It ’s institute wild in the Eastern United States and Canada . ) on-line stores can help .

How and When to Plant Cinnamon Fern

Plant cinnamon fern in   spring or early fall . prod a hole as inscrutable and twice as wide as the root ball to provide room for the rootstalk to grow . tot up some compost ororganic materialto the backfill . Place the root crest just above grease layer and occupy with amended dirt . Water well .

Space several specimens three feet apart to adapt full growth of each plant .

It can take several years for this plant to become established . Once mature and in optimum experimental condition , cinnamon fern may spread and naturalise in your landscape .

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Credit: Mike Jensen

Cinnamon Fern Care Tips

Light

Cinnamon fern performs best is fond to full tone . In colder climates , it may tolerate full sun as long as itlives in consistently damp soil .

Soil and Water

In its natural home ground , cinnamon fern turn along streambeds . So in your landscape , it should be planted in moist , humus - rich , acidulent - to - intermediate soil .

It may be able to cover stand up water now and then but well - draining soil is good . Keep this plant well - irrigate ( at least once a week ) , especially during drouth to prevent it from getting brownish and crispy . give a thick level of mulch around the fundament of the plant to husband soil moisture .

Temperature and Humidity

Cinnamon fern is a wintertime - stout native that can wield the frigid winter down to zone 3 . In southern clime , keep this plant out of the Sunday in the growing season , specially in the afternoons . Humidity is not an issue for this tough plant .

Fertilizer

Add some compost or constitutional matter to your dirt before planting and cinnamon fern should do just fine . If your soil is poor , a spring feeding with a 20 - 20 - 20 balanced fertiliser will give your plant a cost increase . Ferns are raw to plant food so choose for a slow - release case . For the amount to use , follow product recording label pedagogy .

Pruning

you could cut fronds from the plant to regulate the flora during the growing season but it ’s not necessary for the health of the industrial plant . Cut yellowed fronds back to the ground in the fall or , if you involve a monitor of where the works is located , allow the frond to stand and cut back in former outpouring before new growth begins .

Potting and Repotting Cinnamon Fern

Cinnamon fern will grow in pots but you ’ll call for a with child container to fit the fern ’s bed cover . Select a pot with large drain kettle of fish and use well - debilitate potting soil . Site the plant in a shady spot that ’s protect from substantial winds . Keep in brain that pot plants , unlike plants in the landscape , require more frequent lachrymation and fertilization .

Despite their hardihood in areas with cold wintertime , when grow in pots , cinnamon fern are exposed to the cold . As a protective mensuration , winterise the commode by slump the container into the land . you may also grade the container in a 2d , larger mess to create a planting silo that will isolate the roots from the cold .

Repot the plant life when they get to attain the side of the pot or ontogenesis emerges from drain holes . Choose a container one sizing large that the current pot and fulfil it with brisk potting commixture . Move the plant to the new pot and water well to settle it in its novel rest home .

joe pye weed

Credit: Mike Jensen

Pests and Problems

Cinnamon fern is not prostrate to any pests or disease . Cinnamon fern isdeer resistant .

How to Propagate Cinnamon Fern

Cinnamon fern spreads tardily via underground rhizomes that get ruffianly and woody with age . These root are sometimes reap and used as a pot medium fororchidsand other epiphytes .

you may dig up the rhizomes every few years and part them to create more flora . The best time to dig anddivide cinnamon fern is in the spring , just as the new growth emerges . With the rhizome expose , practice a astute knife to cut them into pieces with tooth root attached . Plant the rhizome piece into the original place and other sphere of the garden that offer the good condition for the fern . Keep the divided plants well watered after replanting .

you may alsoadd new sporesto potting medium , where they ’ll formulate into full - fledged fern .

white bearded iris

Credit: Dean Schoeppner

Cinnamon Fern Companion Plants

Joe Pye Weed

Joe Pye weedis a show-stopper of a prairie aboriginal , producing huge , gusty prime head in late summer . It choose dampish soils , but with its all-inclusive radical system , it also tolerates drouth well . It is a large industrial plant , growing 4 to 6 feet tall . Closely relate , hardy ageratum is a spreading plant that grows to only 2 foot marvelous . Another comparative , white button snakeroot , reaches 4 to 5 feet marvelous . All are great for realistic or bungalow plantings and for attract butterflies . Zones 3 - 10

Iris

name for the Greek goddess of the rainbow , irisindeed do in a rainbow of gloss and in many pinnacle . All have the Greco-Roman , impossibly intricate flowers . The flush are construct with three upright " stock " petals and three sag " fall " petals , which are often different colors . The falls may be " bearded " or not . Some cultivar flower a second time in late summer . Some species prefer alkaline soil , while others choose acid soil . Zones 3 - 11

Lobelia

Colorfullobeliasare a wonderful choice for landscaping around pond and streams — anywhere the soil is systematically damp . In fact , lobelia even love downright loaded condition , take a crap it a top choice for peat bog gardens . Perennial types of lobelia ( not to be fuddle with the low - growing , often blue , annual types ) are magnets for hummingbird , so they ’re great for wildlife gardens . The foliation is a freehanded racy green to sometimes blue reddish purpleness . The plant produces striking spike of flowers in all shade of crimson , pink , blue , and white . Lobelia needs humus - rich soil . Mulch with a biodegradable material , such as wood bark or chopped leaves , to add humous to the soil . Zones 2 - 10

Hosta

This industrial plant , barely grown 40 years ago , is now one of the most commonly farm garden plant . Buthostahas earned its position in the heart of gardener — it ’s among the easy plants to grow , as long as you have some shade and ample rainfall . Hostas vary from flyspeck plants suitable for troughs or rock gardens to massive 4 - foot clumps with heart - shaped leaf almost 2 foot long that can be puckered , crinkled - edged , white or green variegated , blue - gray , chartreuse , emerald - inch — the variations are about interminable . Hostas in fresh sizes and blow unexampled foliage feature seem to look each class . This tough , shade - enjoy perennial , also know as plaintain lily , blooms with white or purplish lavender funnel - form or flared efflorescence in summer . Some are intensely fragrant . genus Funka are a favorite of poke and deer . Zones 3 - 9

Frequently Asked Questions

Cinnamon fern ’s name has nothing to do with the spicery or its scent . It ’s because of the cinnamon - color fibers near the base of the plant .

Cinnamon ferns will spread via rhizomes but at a temperate pace that should allow you to keep them in check . They should be divided every 3 - 4 age to maintain vigor .

you’re able to expect your industrial plant to live for about 15 eld .

red lobelias blooms

Credit: Lynn Karlin

Hosta Blooms

Credit: Julie Maris Semarco