Ferns

[davidgarcia899]

Using ferns as ground cover ? Anybody have opinions on this?

[FRUITBOXHERO]

They are green and pretty...lol

[Dangermouse01]

Had a areas around my yard the previous owner had filled with ferns, I pulled them all out. 20 years later I still have ferns coming up. Short of scorching the earth, not sure if I will ever get rid of them completely.

DM

[littlegrower]

   One place where we've camped before had ferns everywhere  . I have to say I didn't care for it. You can't tell if you're going to walk on something....like a snake  . Don't like the thought of someone living in FL not being able to tell if they're about to step on a venomous creature  . Plus, as another member mentioned, I think once you have ferns, they're there to stay whether you change your mind later on or not.

[davidgarcia899]

Personally, I love ferns and Florida has the second largest amount of endemic ferns in the U.S. (only Hawaii has more) but alot of them are endangered so I love to encourage them. I have a pond that is planted dozens of ferns species that I have collected and found.

But I can't find anything on how they affect the soil. Since many varieties make gorgeous clumps that cover the ground and push out weeds I thinking there might be benefits to planting them under my trees.

I guess I was sorta hoping someone would tell me that ferns fix nitrogen hahahaha

[OrganicJim]

Ferns are highly invasive here in Florida. Much better to go with some nitrogen fixing plant as ground cover. Some grove owners have gone to the decrotive peanut but they are finding it might be considered invasive. There are many nitrogen fixing plants that can be used as ground cover what will alow you to cut back on fertilizer use.

[LEOOEL]

I guess when it comes to groundcover, there are many choices. What kind of groundcover do you want. Is it for walking over or basically to look at.
I think ferns for groundcover will, with time, become kind of unruly and jungly, and not necessarily be appropriate to walk through them. Then again, there may be no maintenance required, like cutting the grass, and the biodiversity will benefit micro-organisms, worms, insects, etc. Ultimately, this groundcover environment benefits any fruit trees you may have planted. I see where you're going with this. You'll also ultimately save money on fertilizers because of all the biodiverity (microrisy).
Personally, the ground cover I like, is the one that grows closest to the ground and is really good at preventing other weeds from growing. And, requires very little, if any, maintenance.
To be honest, I'm not sure if my favorite ground cover, described above, even exists, I just hope it does and that I will someday find it.
Maybe having a combination of both is best. A groundcover area of ferns and a different type of groundcover in another area (say a walk path).

[Kay]

there are edible species.  here 2 species are commonly eaten, birds nest and another one i dont know.  the unknown one people here like to grow under betel nut and other light shade casting tree crops.  the new growth is picked for food and it regrows every 3 weeks or so.  if it were popular where you live you may consider it a secondary crop.