Foliage Appreciation Day for May
Many of us set aside the 22nd of each month for taking note of the foliage in our gardens. Garden Bloggers’ Foliage Day is hosted by Christina of My Hesperides Garden. However, I prefer to call it Foliage Appreciation Day (FAD), as it makes a more nifty acronym.
Not that there is anything faddish about foliage, without which our gardens could not exist (and if they did exist, they would look strangely sparse). In our garden, the Ostrich Ferns (Matteuccia struthiopteris) are the foliage kings and queens of the moment. Here the green Ostrich Ferns are accented by a little patch of Spanish Bluebells (Hyacinthoides hispanica).
In our front garden we use Ostrich Ferns as a foundation planting on the north-facing side of the house. Every year or two I have to dig up a bunch of these ferns to keep them from taking over the entire border. They are worth the effort, though.
On the east side of the house there are a mix of evergreen groundcovers and the more diminutive Lady Fern (Athyrium filix-femina).
Wild Ginger (Asarum canadensis) is one of my favorite groundcovers for shade. It likes the wet, cool conditions we are getting this spring.
Hellebore (Helleborus orientalis) flowers are mostly done, but the handsome foliage, shiny and deep green, remains.
The same is true of the Celandine Poppies (Stylophorum diphyllum), whose leaves are matte, rather than shiny, but still handsome.
The zigzag, arching stems of Solomon’s Plume (Maianthemum racemosum) are clothed with smooth-edged, oval leaves. The flower buds that grow at the end of the stem are still swelling.
The new leaves of ‘Wentworth’ Cranberrybush Viburnum (Viburnum trilobum) are an attractive mix of red and green.
‘Wentworth’ seems to bloom a bit later than other varieties or the straight species
The leaves of Purple-Flowering Rasberry (Rubus odoratus) are Maple-like but not as smooth to the touch.
Goat’s Beard leaves (Aruncus dioicus) have a slightly rough look, with their finely toothed edges and dense veining.
But Dwarf Goat’s Beard (Aruncus aethusifolius) has delicate-looking, ferny foliage.
The foliage of May is so fresh and green, you can almost smell the chlorophyll. For more interesting foliage in other gardens, click the link to My Hesperides Garden.
When you dig up your Ostrich Fern are you fixing yourself a meal of fiddleheads?
I thought the fiddleheads were only good to eat when they first come up.
You are right but I thought perhaps you could time your ” weeding out ‘ with a home cooked meal and a side of buttered fiddleheads! They do range a bit, don’t they!
They do indeed.
I noticed your comment that you use Ostrich Ferns as a foundation planting on the north side of your house. Hmm! What do you do when the Ostrich Ferns die back for winter? They aren’t evergreen, are they? The front of my house faces north, and it’s very difficult to find plants that do well there. Do you have the same problem? I’d love to know about your other north-side plants. I’m in Richmond, VA
Well, the planting eventually gets a little bare over the winter, but I just live with it.
Does the poppy greenery die back? I think they are a beautiful plant.
They do tend to die back in the summer.
I, too, want to know if you are making a couple meals with fiddleheads while you cull your ostrich fern! I have a couple less edible ferns that pop up in my shade garden, and I think they are going to need constant watching as well to make sure they don’t run rampant. I love ferns, though. I love the foliage of wild ginger, too.
Sorry, a little late for eating fiddlheads, I think. I tried them once, thought they were only so-so.
What a lovely description of May! As much as I love flowers, over the years I have come to treasure foliage, too, and all the wonderful shades of green.
Hi Laurie. It’s possible that my comments on your blog are going into spam again. WordPress is very annoying.
Your Ostrich ferns are glorious! One of my favorite things about spring is the vibrant and heavy feeling of all the foliage coming back.
I know what you mean, but heavy in a good way.
You have some lovely foliage, I’m especially taken with the wild ginger and cranberrybush viburnum.
You have just about everything one could want in pretty foliage. How old is your garden? Love the Ostrich Fern with the Spanish Bluebells. Your Hellebores look so much better than mine. Have never eaten fiddleheads. Am guessing they’re tasty.
I’ve only eaten fiddleheads once, and didn’t think they were all that exciting.
Oh, and our garden will be 14 years old in July.
The ostrich ferns obviously love it there!
I love green. Ostrich fern is one of my favorites and I too moved some last year. Hopefully in a few years it will cover the ground under an old spruce tree.
A beautiful array of green, Jason! I love the photo of the wild ginger; it is on my list to add to my garden this year.
It’s a great groundcover for shade.
We have a lot of ostrich ferns, but I’ve never heard of fiddleheads.. what are y’all referring to? 🙋🐦
When the ostrich ferns first come up, before they unfurl, people call them fiddleheads. You can pick them and eat them.