Blechnum penna-marina
(Little Hard Fern)
Evergreen, height to 15cm. AGM.

A beautiful, mat forming fern for neutral to acidic soil. Most of the literature says to grow this in partial or full shade, but it has been found it grows better with plenty of sun in moist soils in sun. Rule of thumb would be the drier the soil, the more shade.

Can be slow to establish but spreads quite rapidly once it has done so. Foliage is a lovely fresh to dark green with pink to bronze new growth.

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Blechnum penna-marina
(synonym Austroblechnum penna-marina)
Australia, New Zealand, Chile. Fronds 15 x 3cm, sterile, spreading when mature. Fertile fronds 20 x 3cm, erect. All fronds pinnatifid, pinnae blunt tipped. Rhizome creeping. Can be invasive but very useful as ground cover in large gardens. Does not seem to be strongly calcifuge. There are at least two sub-species. Subspecies alpinaI is smaller fronded and red tinted.

Source: 'Ferns for a cool temperate climate' - Martin Rickyard, page 101

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