I recommend adding ferns in your shade garden. Ferns offer very fine textured foliage. Plant’em in clumps of three or more. Select the proper fern by your garden site, e.g whether it is likely dry or moist soils. Some grow surprisingly well in full sun, but most prefer partial to full shade. Don’t buy a collection of different ferns for planting in one garden place. Instead, select them by their light and soil moisture needs.

Here are four species which are easy to grow:

• Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides)
• Autumn fern (Dryopteris erythrosora)
• Lady fern (Athryium felix-femina)
• Northern maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum) – (pictured)- prefers well-drained, highly composted soils and supplemental moisture during long summer dry spells. Keep soil near pH 7.0 (neutral) by occasional liming every few years if soil pH drops.

All four are not finicky, demonstrate good drought tolerance and grow in soil with little to no additional soil prep. Ideally, you should grow them in a richly composted garden soil along with adequate moisture over long dry spells. Bi-monthly feeding with a water soluble fertilizer such as Miracle-Gro™, Jack’s™, or Nature’s Source™  from April to August will get all off to a good start in the first year.