Feathers, Ferns, and Everything in Between!

Welcome to Feather and Fern Wildscapes! We are a native plant landscaping business with a passion for all things nature and sustainability. Beyond our landscaping work, we aim to provide education and resources for everyone to access. Our blog will bloom with fun facts, knowledge, and helpful information! Whether you are here for our landscaping services, or to learn fun tidbits about plants and the life that depends on them, we are happy to have you!

What’s an interesting find while digging in the dirt?

Getting into the dirt is one of the most enjoyable aspects of landscaping! We unearth some cool things as we are working. One of our finds this past fall was an Eastern red-backed salamander, Plethodon cinereus, taking shelter under a rock. Salamanders are seen as indicators of healthy environments! Like many salamander species, the red-backed does not have lungs, instead they breathe through the pores in their skin. To survive, they need nutrient-rich, moist soil (and lots of bugs to prey on). We love finding creatures like the red-backed salamander because that means we are digging in healthy dirt!

What are our favorite plants?

Shelby’s current favorite plants are the ones she often sees when walking in her woods.  Pipsissewa (Chimaphila maculata) has drooping white flowers that bloom in the summer, and evergreen striped leaves. Pipsissewa likes to grow in little colonies, making what looks like a peaceful village with sleepy, bowing, lanterns. Rattlesnake Plantain (Goodyera pubescens) also likes to grow in colonies, has uniquely patterned evergreen leaves, and white flowers…except Rattlesnake Plantain’s flowers stand erect and tall. A part of the orchid family, the roots have a mycorrhizal relationship with fungi that assists the plant getting moisture and ­nutrients, while the plant provides products of its photosynthesis to feed the fungus. Rattlesnake Plantain colonies look more like what a sustainable city should look like…reaching for the sky while taking from the earth no more than what it can give back in return. Round-lobed Hepatica (Hepatica americana) is another woodland dweller, but it tends to grow more sparse and without being too close to fellow Hepatica neighbors. Where you find one, you are bound to find another, but you need to search! With three lobed leaves that are reminiscent of the Trinity, and delicate pink, white, and purple flowers, Round-lobed Hepatica are early spring’s burst of color in mature woodlands.

Farren Rossman, F & F landscaper and media specialist, has extra enthusiasm for plants found in bog habitats in the coastal plains of the southeast United States. Currently, her favorite plant is the parrot pitcher plant, Sarracenia psittacine. Parrot pitchers are a carnivorous plant with leaf-ends shaped like the head of its namesake bird! Insects, arachnids, and even tadpoles can be consumed by these unique plants! The rosettes of this plant grow low to the ground and can survive underwater as necessary. Farren’s fondest memories of living in Alabama are trekking through the soggy bog habitat to observe these plants amongst other amazing species. Farren is positively obsessed with the parrot pitcher plant!

We thank you for following along with Feather and Fern Wildscapes on this adventure! We’ll continue to use this blogspace to write about all things interesting and fun in the plant world. If you have questions about a certain plant or would like us to highlight a specific topic, comment below on any blog post and we’ll be sure to address it in a follow-up post! To keep up with us, sign up for our occasional newsletter and follow our social media channels as well – Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.