Ferns for Floral Arrangements
Florida's cut-foliage industry started near the turn of the 20th century, when growers of asparagus fern started shipping iced fern sprays by train to florists in the Northeast.
By the 1920s, the city of Apopka adopted the slogan of "The Fern City." Growers sold millions of ferns to dime-store chains, which soon asked for other plants to sell also, launching the foliage industry. By the 1950s, there were over 2,000 acres of cut-foliage production in Florida, most in Volusia County, with asparagus fern being the predominant crop. By the 1980s, production acreage had increased to over 3,300 acres, with more than 90 percent of the acreage devoted to leatherleaf fern.
Volusia County continues as the leading producer, followed by Putnam and Lake counties.
Florida is the national leader in sales of domestic cut, cultivated greens, producing 75 percent of the value of all cut greens sold.
Types of Florida Ferns and Decorative Greens
Common Name | Botanical Name |
|---|---|
Asparagus densiflorus 'Myers' | |
Asparagus macowanii | |
Asparagus setaceus | |
Asparagus densiflorus 'Sprengeri' | |
Asparagus virgatus | |
Aspidistra elatior 'Lurida' | |
Hedera helix | |
Rumohra adiantiformis | |
Serenoa repens | |
Podocarpus macrophyllus | |
Serenoa repens | |
Nephrolepis exaltata | |
Cyperus alternifolius | |
Pittosporum tobira 'Variegata' |
