Your comments about this getting frost because it is a low spot would make me concerned about whether the Blechnum gibbum will do okay there. I love the fern, and also use it a lot here in the SF Bay Area, but it is tender, as is the Asplenium bulbiferum. Other ferns that would look good there in combination might include Blechnum occidentale, Pellaea rotundifolia and Polypodium aureum 'Glaucum'. I also like to mix in bromeliads such as Neoregelia 'Raphael' or Billbergia 'Diane', Aechmea nudicaulis or Aechmea gamosepala. Some plants to provide some lighter green contrast might include Oxalis spiralis aurea, Acoris gramineus 'Ogon' or Carex oshimiensis 'Evergold'. Sedum palmeri also works wonders as a pale lime green ground cover to knit things together in sun or shade, and Aeonium canariense v. subplanum also likes shade and does well with more moisture loving plants. Lastly, a taller growing Carex with great reddish orange showy seed heads, Carex baccans, thrives in deep shade, and combines well with ferns/bromeliads. Some of my favorite Cycads to use up here because they actually grow under cool summer conditions would include Lepidozamia perofskyiana and Ceratozamia mexicana. Your possiblilities for Cycads would be far wider, as you get more summer heat. Understory palms might include Arenga engleri, Chamaedorea elegans, C. microspadix, C. radicalis, C. tepelijote, or check out the offerings that palm grower Phil Burgman has. I'd be prepared to protect/cover your Blechnum gibbum 'Silver Lady' ferns if you drop much below 29F in this spot in winter, although they are trunk hardy to 27F if for limited duration of freezing temps.

First time with Coontie plants, planted two of them outside my pool cage. Mostly sunny southern facing area. They were fine till the cold hit us last week for 2 nights. I thought they were cold hardy, so I did not cover them, as I was short on "plankets" and sheets! They used to be green. Now they are brown. Does anyone know if they will turn green again? Are the leaves that turned brown definately dead? If I took off all of the brown fronds, there would be about 1 leaf left. I bought at Home Depot, and I saved receipts so I could dig up and return/replace

Cycads are protected by law in Australia so trafficking in them is very controlled. Where you see large cycads sold they're plants that have been removed from development sites. You can apply for a permit for that. That in itself isn't a big issue on a residential property, but there are experts around who do move those large cycads. And there is a market for them, a lot of people prefer to not wait the 50 to 100 years for a large plant and are prepared to pay. You sometimes get ads from people selling them, the buyer has to do the removal and carry the risk. You could ask around the nurseries though not ones like Bunnings, etc. You could also check with PACSOA (Palm and Cycad Society of Australia) but they're based mainly in Brisbane. Should be able to give some advice though.

You might want to also check out floribunda on the Big Island of Hawaii. Great prices! Most palms are only $4 or $5, some are only $1 or $2, few if any are over $10, but there is a $100. minimum plus shipping.With only one order you will have the start of a fine collection of unusual palms. However you should remember that the shipping will probably be at least as much as the palms.And Jeff won't be able to give you an estimate on shipping and handling costs. The palms are usually huge for their container size. Seedlings often have to be immediately re-potted into a 4 inch or even 1 gallon pot. Four inch palms go into a gallon size container and the one gallon size have to go into a 2 or 3 gallon pot. Everything is very healthy looking, too! You have to check it out. You'll go nuts! Here is a link that might be useful: floribundapalms