Ebony spleenwort is a pretty little fern! I envy you the climate and shade where ferns can grow. My house, as I've mentioned many times before, had an ugly hedge along the front and nothing but Bermuda grass all around when I moved in. On one side, near where the garage is now, the woman who rented this house with her family for 10 years had put in a few iris. Yellow bearded, a few blue bearded, and some of the Louisiana varieties. That was it. (In homage to that attempt at adding something to the yard, I've divided and planted those same iris all around the yard, and they're the best thing going for this yard in the early spring.) The rest was grass, dead fruit trees, one vicious wild rose (I didn't do a good job and it died after transplanting), and tons of hackberries.

I'm working on layers of shade and open area in the front, and will do the same in the back soon. I need to think about putting a wall back there, so haven't done much. Anyway, I'll know I've established some good micro-zones when I can put in a few ferns under some of the (finally) more established trees and in areas that are now heavily shaded enough for things like Oregon grape, etc.

SRS