Returned to Lady Fern after a difficult first attempt

My first attempt at Lady Fern failed — crown death from frost on tender varieties got hold of it and I didn't know what I was looking at until it was too late. I left it alone for a year before trying again.

The second attempt, with proper attention to removing dead fronds cleanly at the base in spring, has been completely different. It's now thriving in a fern wall or vertical garden in a shaded courtyard and prehistoric elegance with delicate layered fronds is on full display. frond dieback in winter for deciduous species this year was a genuine reward for starting again. If you failed first time, the plant isn't the problem — the conditions probably were.