Description
Dryopteris ludoviciana, the southern shield fern, is a US southerner (ludoviciana means Louisiana in botanese!) that can be found in the wild in swamps especially with a limestone influence. However, while it needs neither, it achieves its greatest beauty when situated in a moist to wet area. Try the muddy margins of a pond or bog. When happy the shiny semi-evergreen fronds can reach 4 feet, but will be ornamental at any height. Note too the constricted frond tips. Unlike many eastern natives this species will happily settle in the warmth of Southern California gardens making it eligible for cultivation in Zones 6-9.
Produced seasonally.
