Chris Goudey Founding president of our Society and respected author of several books on ferns and their culture, Chris with his wife Lorraine owns and operates Austral Ferns, a successful wholesale fern nursery near Geelong. You will have to do different things to establish successful ferneries in different environments, The main thing is to provide some shelter from the elements. For example if you live up at Ferntree Gully or a similar spot in the Dandenongs you won't have to do much at all, mainly provide some protection from frost. If however, you live in the city or the western side thereof, you will have to do quite a bit to create a hospitable environ-ment for ferns, as there are more elements to contend with.
Most ferns grow naturally in rainforest situations.
They won't tolerate drying winds or too much sun. You may be fortunate enough to have somewhere in your garden which remains damp and is fairly shaded - but it must also have protection from the drying, northerly winds. If you plan to grow tree terns, you need a very high roof unless you are prepared to dig your tree ferns out every few years and either cut the bottoms off to lower them or discard and replace them. There are some tree ferns which will tolerate full sun once they get going. You will need open, friable soil though you can use a clay soil provided it is elevated and is well drained.