Hi, 

Do you know the name of the ferns you planted? Were they perennial ferns or annual? Many ferns are not evergreen so depending on the species it they were supposed to turn brown with a killing frost at the end of fall/beginning of winter and die back to the ground. Deciduous ferns haven't emerged yet so you could still wait and see if they come back.  

You can choose your parameters on the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay site and it will give you a list of plants to choose from. The term herbaceous generally means a perennial that will die back in winter but emerge again in spring so if that is what you are looking for, you can check that under "Plant Type". You may want some small shrubs if you have space for them and just keep in mind that you will probably have to purchase small sizes with smaller root masses to fit in between the maples roots when planting. 

Depending on the rain and drainage just keep in mind watering needs since the maple will suck up much of the ground water with its large roots. If there are periods of drought you will have to supplement water to the new plants. 

Let us know if you have further questions. 

Emily

Thanks so much for getting back to me in a timely manner. I really appreciate it. I do not know what type of ferns they were. I wish I did. I will send you an attached picture to show you what they look like, but I can still wait and give some time to see if they come back. But they do not look good. Thanks again.

Hello John,

The pictured ferns look totally normal for this time of year, so with a few more weeks of waiting as the soil warms, they will resprout if the roots have remained healthy. If you prefer ferns that keep foliage in winter (though they can still flatten a bit and look a bit tired by spring) , you can try growing Christmas Fern (botanical name Polystichum acrostichoides).

When not soaked by recent rains, the soil in that are might skew dry, given the root competition maples are notorious for. "Dry shade" is a good benchmark for selecting species tolerant of those conditions, and some of those will be fine with occasional wetness as long as it isn't soggy for long periods.

Among evergreen perennials and short shrubs that may work here, some ideas are listed below. If deer visit the area, that can narrow the list down some if they browse foliage. We'll focus on natives (species will be native unless noted), but since so few are evergreen, we'll include a few non-invasive non-natives in case you wanted to mix them in.

• Golden Ragwort (Packera aurea, formerly named Senecio aureus)
• American Alumroot, also called Coral Bells (Heuchera americana)
• several species of Sedge (Carex), of which some are native and some are not; they look like grasses but are not closely related to them; a Mt. Cuba Center study recently released provides an overview of which natives may be best suited to certain garden conditions
• Woodland Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum) - a slow ground-hugging creeper, so give it space apart from a more aggressive spreader
• Partridgeberry (Mitchella repens) - same comment as the above
• Plantain-leaf Pussytoes (Antennaria plantaginifolia)
• Barren Strawberry (Geum fragarioides or Waldsteinia fragarioides) - "barren" because it doesn't actually fruit like their distant strawberry cousins; in the wild they prefer it a bit cooler than most of Maryland, but in your area it will probably be fine
• Allegheny Spurge (Pachysandra procumbens) - technically not a local MD native, but it's native to the eastern U.S.; can blush a somewhat mocha-coffee color in winter with silvery spots, so while evergreen, may not stand out as much as something remaining green
• Himalayan Sweetbox (Sarcococca hookeriana humilis) - non-native; slow creeper; fragrant early-season flowers
• Barrenwort (Epimedium, several species and hybrids) - non-native; some are evergreen, but not all; flowers are not as showy from a distance because they are fairly small
• Siberian Carpet (Microbiota decussata) - non-native; looks almost like a wide, low juniper and might turn caramel- or bronze-toned for winter (may depend on weather) and will return to green again in spring; prefers good drainage

A wider array of deciduous (losing leaves for winter) native species can add to the mix, providing a greater range of flower colors, bloom times, and other features. We're accustomed to many non-native plants leafing-out again early in the season, but many of our native plants don't emerge from winter dormancy until further into April or even early May. There are some native spring ephemerals coming out now, but those particular species bloom early and then die back completely by summer, staying dormant until the following spring. They can be great additions to a wildflower garden under a tree, but are best mixed with other species that remain up the rest of the growing season.

Miri