They prefer light to part shade but will take full sun in very moist soil. They usually do best in a slightly acid soil but are adaptable to more alkaline sites. The genus is a large one with species found throughout most of the temperate world. It includes the very lovely and popular Japanese painted fern, Athyrium niponicum 'Pictum' . A. filix-femina is quite common and found in the British Isles, India, China, Japan, North Africa, Canada, North America, Mexico and Peru.
Propagation is by spring division of clumps and spores.
Apparently, they don't always come true from spore, giving rise to new forms and a fair amount of confusion in the naming of cultivars. More than three hundred cultivars of the lady fern have been named over the past century. Some of them have incredible crested, congested or otherwise interestingly shaped fronds. Athyrium filix-femina 'Fancy Fronds' , introduced by Judith Jones and named after her nursery. The circular lobes formed by the pinnae resemble tatting or handmade lace - thus he common name.