
Ostrich Fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) nestled around some rotted down fallen trees.

Ostrich Fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) nestled around some rotted down fallen trees.
Sparingly collected these fertile Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) fronds from the neighbor’s woodlot I got to walk in yesterday. I don’t have fancy expensive equipment like petri dishes or a microscope but I can at least do the drying of the frond/spores step. Already made the mistake on the first step which was to place the collected fronds into a paper envelope, instead I did a plastic bag.

If I succeed I will have my first ever attempt at fern propagation succeed + have another native plant species added to the gardens AND have available for selling in the greenhouse. If I fail well… not sure I’ll be so fortunate as to encounter this species again in that difficult-to-navigate forest, and for that matter during ripe spore season for it.
FERRRRRNNNNSSSS at the Guelph Arboretum
Don’t look so shocked at my question marks, a fern-ID specialist I am not.