Photos thanks to Midwest Groundcovers.

2004 Perennial Plant of the Year®

The Perennial Plant Association named Athyrium niponicum ‘Pictum’ the 2004 Perennial Plant of the Year®. This perennial low-maintenance Japanese painted fern is one of the showiest ferns for shade gardens. It is popular due to its hardiness nearly everywhere in the United States, except in the desert and northernmost areas in zone 3. ‘Pictum’ grows 18 inches tall and as it multiplies can make a clump that is more than two feet wide. ‘Pictum’ produces 12- to 18-inch fronds that are a soft shade of metallic silver-gray with hints of red and blue. This lovely fern, which prefers partial to full shade, makes an outstanding combination plant for adding color, texture, and habit to landscape beds and containers.

Japanese painted fern is native to China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. It has readily established itself in North American gardens as one of the most versatile ferns for the shade garden. It is easy to understand how this plant received its name. Each frond looks as if it has been. meticulously painted in shades of green, gray and burgundy. ‘Pictum’ has wine-red stems that bleed over into the silvery-green fronds. The exquisite fronds seem to grow more beautiful as the season progresses. The fronds unfurl to reveal a striking metallic grey, while old fronds stay a darker silver color.

The magnificent texture and color of the fronds electrify shady areas of the garden and make the fern a wonderful companion for a variety of shade plants. Japanese painted fern provides a nice contrast to other shade-loving perennials such as hosta, bleeding heart, columbine, astilbe and coral bells. A popular combination is Japanese painted fern with Hosta ‘Patriot’ and ‘Ginko Craig’. For something different, try Hosta sieboldiana ‘Elegans’. Another friendly companion plant for the Japanese painted fern is Tiarella (foam flower). One of the most unique possibilities is to use this fern with sedges. Carex (sedges) are shade-loving, easy-to-grow grasslike plants. Try Carex morrowii ‘Variegata’ or Carex siderosticha ‘Silver Sceptre’. Other selections that are excellent compliments to Japanese painted fern include Brunnera macrophylla ‘Langtrees’, ‘Silver Wings’, or ‘Jack Frost’; Lamium maculatum ‘Orchid Frost’ and ‘Purple Dragon’; Astilbe ‘Snowdrift’; Astilbe simplicifolia ‘Sprite’; and Dicentra ‘King of Hearts’. Use these selections with white flowers or variegated leaves to echo or pick other colors for contrast. Most any plant will make a great counterpart to the graceful, attractive, and versatile Athyrium niponicum ‘Pictum’.

This fern needs a well-drained, compost-rich soil and flourishes where moisture and humidity abound. ‘Pictum’ grows best in part- to full shade. The best frond color results in light shade. In the south, a few hours of morning sun will bring out the high colors. In the north they will take more morning sun without sunburning. The colors are more intense in the spring or in cooler temperatures or in cooler climates such as the Northwest. Add 2-3 inches of compost or peat moss to the beds each spring or fall. This fern is extremely reliable when grown in the proper environmental conditions. Its colorful foliage should be vibrant from early spring until frost, when it will go dormant and reemerge with its excellent foliage the next spring.

Photos thanks to Walters Gardens, Inc.

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PLANT DATA

Hardiness
USDA Zones 3 to 8

Light
Part to full shade. The best frond color results in light shade.

Size
18 inches tall; 24 inches wide

Soil
Japanese painted fern needs well-drained, compost-rich soil.