Female fern fern: planting and care

Flower growers, who like to decorate their garden with unusual plants, have always thought about getting a fern. This amazing plant, which most like dark and damp places, can become a real gem of a flower garden, favorably shading its most unattractive corners. Surely you met him walking in the woods. Unusual and at the same time like lace twigs involuntarily attract attention. Immediately remember the pictures of prehistoric times, when the climate was wet and warm, and the ferns and horsetails dominated the planet. Today the climate has allowed to survive only the most chopped of them, but still beautiful.

Instead of joining

The ability to transfer the penumbra attracted the attention of masters of design and florists. There are about 200 species of ferns in the world, and only ten of them are suitable for growing in gardens and parks. This number includes the woman's nomad, the most amazing representative of the plant world. And what about this plant tells us botany? This modest person is referred to the family Shchitovnikovye. Why are we interested in the women's maid?

Features of the view

This species comparatively recently settled in the middle zone of Russia. The female vagabond in the spring appears above the surface of the soil. These green shoots are called vayami. Delicate, curved, they eventually turn into very beautiful leaves, thin and delicate. The woman's kitten grows about 1 meter high. The soil he prefers garden or forest. He tolerates penumbra well. This perennial, which in one place can grow for decades in a row.

origin of name

The fern of the woman's kitten still wears an ancient, Roman name. It has a ritual meaning and at the same time points to a comparison, since in the forests there is also a fern male. At the same time, it is less luxurious. Its strong, erect and less shallow leaves do not seem so lacy and tender, although they are also quite beautiful. However, they belong to different families and are no more than distant relatives.

A bit more about the form

To date, the woman's kotyazhnik (photo fully confirms this) is one of the most beautiful forest plants. It has a creeping rhizome, covered with scales. Roots are very characteristic for representatives of this family. They are thick, black and dense.

Leaves - this is what distinguishes a female fern from everyone else. High, lacy and weightless, they, like a green spiderweb, please the eye. Sterile leaves almost do not differ from fertile leaves, and since the maturation of the plant they are all sporiferous. There are many beliefs about the flowering of this amazing plant. However, we hasten to disappoint you. It does not bloom. But the leaves are very elegant and decorative, for which the plant liked growers. And they perform a number of functions.

Life cycle

Fully formed leaves live one season. In doing so, they both perform a vegetative function, and ensure reproduction. And when the first frost leaves die. However, this does not end the life cycle of such an amazing plant, as the female vagabond. Fern, photo of which we cite in the article, in August-September dissipates the mature pores, of which the same autumn grows gametophyte. This is a haploid, multicellular phase in the cycle of plant development.

The gametophyte develops from spores and produces sex cells. Outwardly it is heart-shaped and completely different from the future plant. However, this small creeping plant is able to survive any conditions and turn into a beautiful fern in the spring. This is how the female ko-wife multiplies. Pollen and pestle are enclosed in one dispute, which ripens and transforms into the rudiment of a new plant. That, in turn, passing through the winter stratification and hardening, grows in a new warm season and becomes a lush bush.

Varieties

What can be a woman's wife? The description would be incomplete, if not to say that in nature this plant is very volatile. Species can differ in shape, size and density of the leaves. More recently, you could count about twenty varieties. Then this material served as the basis for hybridization. If to date, to count hybrids, including hybrids and varieties of female fern, which were found in nature or in culture, it turns out about 300 varieties. Today we will not talk about everything, but we will try to mention the most popular, beautiful and uncomplicated in care.

The lady-in-law "lady in red"

This is one of the highest representatives of the class. Its rhizomes are dense, black, and with them there are straight, ascending or trailing, plethoric. They perform different functions. On the one hand - to stay in the ground. And the second function is the collection of moisture and nutrients from the surface of stones, earth and wood bark. That is why ferns can survive in almost any conditions.

But back to our plant. The leaves are collected in a bundle, they are twice and thrice pinnate, with dissected feathers. This creates a very attractive image, gentle and airy. This variety belongs to the forest, so the plant prefers light nutrient soil. Ideal option will be forest humus, mixed with land. He avoids swampy places, although he likes light penumbra and normal soil moisture. He brings out the raw lowlands, so if you have places on the site that have long been empty for this reason, take them ferns.

But the arid places for him are fatal. In this case, you will quickly see how the plant will lose decorativeness. Leaves will become brown, fall, growth will slow. The peak is most often in the middle of summer. The bushes reproduce most easily with the help of division, since it is rather long and difficult to grow a sprout in a pot. Plant this variety in the shady places, and you can stop at the planting of some bushes or make a multi-tiered mound and on each step plant a bush. And under the canopy of the fern you can plant snowdrops, woods and other forest flowers.

Magnificent small fern

The woman queen "victoria" is another magnificent representative of her class. The maximum height is up to 100 cm, so with its help you can make out small, small corners of the garden. The leaves are large, tender, light green. And petioles in this species are yellowish or reddish. The leaf plate is twice or thrice pinnately divided. Vayi are uninhabitable, but the roots will calmly transfer the cold period and by the beginning of the next summer new leaves will be released.

This is the most unpretentious fern for shady gardens and normally moistened soils. On sandy areas, it will not grow. "Victoria" - a sort of low, with narrow leaves. Their narrow feathers are directed alternately up and down, so that the right chains are formed on both sides of the leaf axis. This is an excellent option for shady flower beds, which can be supplemented by hosts and cereals.

Landing

Let's talk a little more about what kind of land is needed for a woman's kitten. First of all, you need to acquire parts of the bush. If there is a forest zone nearby, you can find an adult plant and, dividing the root into several parts, plant it around your garden. Or you can buy seedlings in the horticultural store. Now we need to prepare a landing pit. To do this, dig up the earth and add humus (preferably leaf) to it, as well as wood ash. If the soil is heavy, you can add a bit of river sand. The mixture is thoroughly mixed.

Depth and diameter of the landing pit depends on the size of the seedling. After planting, it is necessary to water the plant abundantly, and also to cover up the soil. In the first year the plant is watered and weeded, loosened the soil. But from the second year of life, the need for irrigation is virtually eliminated, only in the case of a severe drought it is worth pampering the plant with a shower. Weed grass in the shade, and even under the luxurious leaves of the fern practically does not grow. However, the gardener needs to know that spores are ripening on the back of the leaves, and there is self-seeding. Therefore, do not confuse the tender curls of the vaii of the coffin with weeds. They can be planted around the other corners of the garden or hand over for sale to a pet store.

Care of the plant

It is minimal, in fact, for the second year after planting you will not have to do almost anything. Ferns do not need top dressing, garden and forest soils quite satisfy their needs. Despite the apparent tenderness, this plant perfectly tolerates even the most severe frosts. To do this, yellowed leaves before the onset of winter are cut, and the soil is mulched by about 15 cm. But if in your region frosts are very severe, it is recommended to add a layer of foliage.

Planting a fern on the plot, the gardener receives an appreciable bonus. He does not have to contend with diseases and pests, because this plant simply does not have them. This gives a weighty advantage over other plants, for which you need constant supervision.

Practical use

To date, the fern has only one practical value - it's landscape design. But in this he has practically no equal. Try to find another plant that does not need sun and watering, weeding and regular treatments from pests. In addition, it will grow in one place for many years, which means that these corners of the garden can remain pristine for a long time, every year pleasing you with their appearance.

There is evidence that it is used as a medicinal plant. However, officially the kocheyshnyk this does not count. Most often, rhizomes are used, the decoction of which has an antihelminthic effect. It is also used for gastric disorders, and alcoholic tincture against uterine bleeding. Water infusion of leaves is used as an expectorant.

We will not recommend the use of a cabbage for medicinal purposes, but as the main decoration and raisins of your garden, it fits as well as possible. And if you have a shaded front garden, then this plant will be an ideal option for its decoration.