On Thu, 13 Sep 2007 19:37:59 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Thu, 13 Sep 2007 11:01:45 +0100, "Rhiannon_s"
wrote:

snip

Do ferns need a lot of soil btw, does anyone know? I'm having to grow
everything in pots on a patio here and am always a bit uncertain on big and
deep pots should be.

My book doesn't say anything about pot size, other than that the pot
should be big enough to accommodate the roots of the fern to be
potted, and that they need potting on as they grow. I guess you just
use your judgement and size the pot to the plant.

A good compost is one part loam, two parts leafmould and one part
gritty sand. Add a smidgen each of hydrated lime, JI base fertiliser
and charcoal. Omit the lime for lime-hating ferns (although how you
know which is which, I don't know. Perhaps my book says somewhere, but
not obviously). The compost should be damp but not wet. The ferns
should not be potted too hard, as they root better in light spongy
compost. Put plenty of crocks in the bottom to aid drainage.

I grow hardy ferns here in the NE. It matters not what compost you grow
them in. Mine are in cheap old potting compost and I cannot remember when I
last fed them. The size, again does not really matter as they have very
little root system. A 10-12" pot will be ample, but make sure that it has a
WIDE base otherwise it will blow over when the tops grow large and you
forget to water them. If you can keep them in shade 'all the time' they
will perform best. I have them in small pots (hart's tongue and Japanese
holly fern), up to old dustbins (with concrete blocks in the bottom to help
stability and save compost).
--
Jim S
Tyneside UK
www.jimscott.co.uk