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12-03-2006, 05:01 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening

On 12/3/06 16:50, in article ,
"Dave Poole" wrote:

Sacha wrote:

There's a very attractive small fern that grows in little cracks in stone
walls. It's fronds are only a matter of inches long, 6 to 8, perhaps and it
has quite a dark edge to the leaf and the stem is dark, too, though that
seems to vary. It hugs the walls pretty closely. Does anyone have an idea
what it is from that rather poor description?!

I seem to remember that you have more than just one 'wall fern' at
Hill House. The one you refer to is almost certainly 'Maidenhair
Spleenwort' - Asplenium trichomanes. It has extremely dark, wiry
fronds with rounded leaflets. Young fronds have lighter green 'stems'
but these darken to almost black over several months.

Another that I'm sure I've seen there is the diminutive 'Wall Rue' -
Asplenium ruta-muraria. It forms tiny tufts of a few leathery, dark
green fronds often no more than 5cms. long.

The 'Rusty Back fern' Ceterach officinarum is almost certainly there
as well. Rather like a stockier, thicker, shorter fronded version of
the first with rather bright, rust coloured masses of spores on the
leaf undersides in autumn.

I'm beginning to think we should employ you. ;-) Come to think of it,
you've helped enough customers with information on busy days! Asplenium
trichomanes is the one I'm thinking of, as Des also suggested. It's one of
those tiny plants that I find really enchanting but never know the name of.
The Ceterach officinarum is familiar and so is the A. ruta-muraria but I
don't like either of those in quite the same way. The first Asplenium is
growing wonderfully in the wall beside the path of our local pub and I never
fail to admire it when we go there. I'm wondering if I could get it to
'take' in the stumps of the apple trees we have beside the wooden seat on
the 'pebble bed' to the left of the big lawn.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
)