|
Resources < Wildlife Habitats < Native Plants < Native Plant Database < Polystichum acrostichoides
The
toughest, most low-maintenance fern I know, Christmas fern tolerates
all kinds of misery—everything from heat and drought and clay and
poor soil to repeated transplanting. All it really asks for is some
shade. In return, it will give you year-round green. The leathery
fronds grow in lush clumps about two feet high and wide. The fertile
fronds are longer than the sterile ones, and the tips of their
undersides are bronze with spores.
Christmas fern looks great growing along a shady stream bank or as
an accent near a mossy, sculpture-like stump or log. It also makes a
terrific companion for yellowroot. But nothing sets off Christmas
fern’s dark, tapering fronds like the smooth, silvery roots and
trunk of a grand old beech. What a wonderful coincidence that the
two species are so often found together in the wild!
Christmas fern occurs naturally in moist, well-drained woods
throughout Georgia. Rabbits, chipmunks, and box turtles nibble the
fronds, which also provide cover, and the fuzzy silver fiddleheads
are consumed by ruffed grouse.
Dryopteridaceae (Wood Fern Family)
Evergreen fern with dark, lance-shaped fronds one
to two feet in length. Pinnae (leaflets) are stocking shaped.
1 to 2 feet high and wide.
Clump-forming.
Moderate.
Full to part shade.
For best results, plant in moist,
well-drained, acidic soil. Though Christmas fern does stay green in
winter, it lies flat on the ground during this season. By spring its
old fronds are usually looking pretty bedraggled and you’ll probably
want to cut them back as new growth begins.
Assets include evergreen, glossy fronds and
pale, downy fiddleheads.
Plant in a shady perennial border or as an
accent in the woodland garden. The evergreen fronds make excellent
additions to Christmas flower arrangements.
Provides shelter for insects, reptiles, and
amphibians.
Found throughout Georgia in rich woodlands,
often on slopes and stream banks.
Spores, division.
Text and photo by Leslie Kimel, Georgia Wildlife Federation
|
Christmas Fern
