Looking fabulous in the winter garden in mid December is the amazing Arachnioides standishii. The common name, upside down fern, refers to the fronds, which appear to be inverted. This slowly spreading fern is tardily deciduous, meaning it remains evergreen until temperatures drop to 10-15 degrees F. Although the fine texture makes it look delicate, it’s anything but. We’ve found it very easy to grow in a variety of woodland garden conditions. This particular clone is from a 1978 US National Arboretum collection (USNA 45013.H) made by the late Dr. John Creech on Honshu in Tottori prefecture on Japan’s Mt. Daisen at 3,400′ elevation. Production is always challenging since spore don’t ripen until after Christmas. Hardiness is Zone 4-8. We hope to have Arachnioides standishii available in January 2026 through Plant Delights Nursery.
Ferns are one of our specialty collections at JLBG and includes about 82 genera, 370 species (including subspecies and varieties), 29 undetermined, 30 nothospecies and 936 clones. Check out images from our garden fern collection, considered by many pteridophyles as perhaps the most extensive in the world.
