About The Hardy Fern Foundation
The Hardy Fern Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1989. The Foundation's mission is to establish a comprehensive collection of temperate ferns and fern allies of the world for display, evaluation, public education and introduction. Founding members include Sue Olsen, Sylvia Duryee, Marge Baird, Jocelyn Horder, Mareen Kruckeberg, Jeanette Kunnen, Barbara Carman, Jan Dalby, John Mickel, Martha Robbins and the late Joe Beitel. Current membership totals 280 individuals whose homes range from Washington State to Australia. The founding member's passion for ferns moved them to create this organization to make a greater variety of ferns available. Information on ferns and their culture was difficult to come by and few people were growing them. These "fern lovers" wanted to change this by educating the public on the beauty, ease, and diversity of these wonderful plants.
There are many different shapes and sizes of ferns as well as textures and colors. For example, Dryopteris erythrosora, commonly called the autumn fern, has bronzy-red new growth darkening to a lush glossy green. Athyrium otophorum, or eared lady fern, has triangular light green fronds with burgundy stems, the leaves mature to a soft gray-green while the burgundy stems remain. They are stunning! Some ferns are large and very tropical looking such as Dryopteris wallichiana, which reaches a height of six feet tall! Others such as Polypodium scouleri and Woodsia polystichoides grow to be less than 12 inches tall and are perfect additions to smaller alpine or rock gardens.
The Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden is home to the Hardy Fern Foundation's main fern collection. The complimentary nature of rhododendrons and ferns has made the RSBG an ideal site. Currently, a total of 130 species representing 20 genera of ferns can be found in the Garden. Some of the more well-known genera are Adiantum (maidenhair fern), Athyrium (lady fern), Blechnum (hard fern), Dryopteris (wood fern, shield fern, buckler fern), Osmunda (flowering fern), Polypodium (polypody fern), Polystichum (holly fern, shield fern, sword fern), Woodsia (woodsia), Woodwardia (chain fern). Initially, the entire collection was planted in the lower Study Garden. In 1998, all the species of the fern genus Dryopteris were transplanted to the upper Woodland Garden to accommodate the expanding collection.
Many members contribute time, energy and ferns to the HFF. One such member is Sue Olsen, owner and founder of Foliage Gardens Nursery in Bellevue, Washington. Sue's nursery is the oldest mail order nursery for spore grown ferns in the United States. She has traveled to many places across the globe in search of ferns including a trip to New Zealand, a place which she termed "fern heaven." Through the years the HFF has contributed toward the RSF endowment challenge as well as pledged $9,000 toward the renovation of the lower study garden. The HFF values the support it has received over the years from the RSF and looks forward to a continued successful alliance in the future.
