Fiddleheads, Ferns, Bluebells, and Bleeding Hearts
A classic spring combination consists of ferns, bleeding hearts (Lamprocapnos spectabilis) and Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica).
One day all you see tightly curled fiddleheads emerging from the crowns.
The next thing you know, the ferns are reaching over 3 feet. In a few more weeks these Ostrich Ferns (Matteuccia struthiopteris) will top out at 4-5 feet.
Not long after we moved in, I removed the foundation planting of Japanese Yews (Taxus cuspidata) along the shady north side of the house, and replaced them with Ostrich Ferns. Japanese Yews are pretty boring, at least when kept as an unnaturally short rectangular hedge. Keeping them at 3 feet or less is really a form of cruelty to plants.
Of course, the disadvantage of Ostrich Ferns as a foundation planting is that they die back in winter.
I furnished the Ostrich Ferns with a variety of companions for each season. In spring, there are lots of Virginia Bluebells and Bleeding Hearts.
Ostrich Ferns spread aggressively, and sometimes I dig out several of the crowns.
When the Ostrich Ferns are about this size, before they have finished unfurling, they look to me like green caterpillars rearing up on their back legs.
Oh, and one other spring companion: False Forget-Me-Not (Brunnera macrophylla) Bleeding Hearts and Bluebells are ephemerals, but Brunnera’s foliage lasts all year long.
Usually Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) joins in the party, but this year they are late.
What are your favorite plant combinations for spring?
gardeninacity 
I love your ferns and agree they are much more interesting than a heavily pruned evergreen.
Evergreen foundation plants are more like furniture than plants.
fiddleheads are delicious. You eat the young unfurled ferns, like in first picture, simmer until tender , 30 minutes or more. serve with butter.
I’ve never tried them. Thanks for the suggestion. Of course, almost anything is good with butter.
Lovely combination! I am a bit behind you in Nova Scotia. I have pulmonaria, hyacinths and botanical tulips in bloom, very nice combo.
I like hyacinths. Botanical tulips are the same as species tulips, right? In that case, I really like them, too.
Really pretty spring display. Love the ferns, but those bluebells steal the show for me.
They really do. Love those blue flowers.
Virginia blue bells and orange tone striped tulips. The look amazing from a distance as well. American meadows has a photo of the combo https://www.americanmeadows.com/perennials/woodland-wildflowers/virginia-bluebells
Also I love Columbine with blue hyacinths and spring iris
That sounds fantastic – I love orange tulips. Thanks for the link – amazing pics.
Hello Jason, the pink and soft blue is a lovely colour combination. I’m a very simple gardener and haven’t mastered planting in combinations of plants yet (they tend to be in blocks) but we do have a stand of deep blue Siberian Iris against the backdrop of a Philadelphus Coronarius Aureus (golden mock orange), which is very striking.
That sounds striking indeed. Never heard of golden mock orange – thought they were all white.
A beautiful combination.
Thanks!
The ferns are so appealing and I like the Brunnera very much. My Brunnera didn’t return this year.
That’s a shame about your Brunnera! I wonder if the climate is a bit too warm for it in your area?
I used to work for several people who grew ostrich ferns and I agree; I much rather have them than a yew hedge. I love those bluebells!
Same here!
We have ostrich ferns too but they don’t get that tall. I think it is too hot and dry here for them. My favorite combo is Wild Columbine, Big yellow iris and appendaged waterleaf. They look so good together.
Never heard of appendaged waterleaf. The Iris and Columbine sounds intriguing.
What a great combination! Do you ever harvest your fiddleheads? I have a brunnera next to one of my bleeding hearts, but I’m going to have to move it as the bleeding heart is getting so big. I also have Leucojum that blooms at the same time and looks really nice with the bleeding hearts. I do have a yew somewhere, but I never have to prune it – the deer do it for me!
We’ve never harvested the fiddleheads, though we’ve thought of it now and then. Leucojum and Bleeding Heart sounds interesting.
Such memories. The only things missing are the lily of the valley that nestled beneath my mother’s ferns. Perhaps it’s too early for them. No matter, as the bleeding hearts and bluebells are perfect companions. We’re already losing our ephemerals, and summer is icumen in, so it’s great to see spring still blooming up there.
I have lily of the valley in an area of the back garden. The weather up here is staying wet and cold.
I love those ferns too and enjoy watching them grow (almost literally!) in spring. I found a delightful combination by chance on the shady side of my house: Brunnera planted next to a deep brown Heuchera. The blue flowers and dark reddish brown foliage of the Heuchera are so striking. I think the Heuchera was planted out from a pot last autumn so I had no idea at the time how good it would look, and I intend to use that combination again soon. 🙂
The best combinations often occur through serendipity.
Wonderful plants and the combination is lovely indeed.
Ferns and columbines are my favourites too, as well as cranesbills and lilies of the valley. At the moment, only leaves are visible. The lovely green colour is at its best now.
Cranesbill and lily of the valley sounds intriguing. Do the cranesbills have a tendency to crowd out the lily of the valley?
My ferns are loving all this rain. Should be a good year.
My ferns are loving all the rain, also. Me, not so much. Lots of rain and cool weather are good for fungal diseases.
Beautiful combo! My fave right now is a Bronze Pheasant Rogersia amidst Japanese painted ferns.
That sounds delicious!
I love ferns but not that one. It is always creeping underthe fence from the neighbors and invading my beds.
Yeah, it’s pretty aggressive, but I love it anyway.
You REMOVED yews?! Oh my! Are they common there? I like them so much that it would be difficult for me to remove any. If they were in bad condition, I would want to renovate them. Our native yew is very rare too, but it is not very pretty anyway. (I hate when I work with an ugly plant that I can not cut down because it is too cool.)
The Yews grown here are not native, but they are common as dirt as clipped foundation plants.
I have heard that about them, but it is still difficult to imaging getting rid of yews!
What a lovely early combination. I find ferns invasive too, if mine get a foothold they are impossible to dig up. Gosh, the difference a few weeks make!
Just loved this….green caterpillars rearing up on their back legs…YES!
I can dig my ferns up, but it can be a big job, especially since there are so many of them.