Gymnocarpium dryopteris
WESTERN OAK FERN
- Delicate pale green fronds in the spring deepen in colour with age
- Fronds emerge from long creeping rhizomes
- Hairy fiddleheads rise from under the soil; not from a central crown like most ferns
HEIGHT: 15-30 cm · SPREAD: 30-45 cm
Matteuccia struthiopteris
OSTRICH FERN
- AKA Matteuccia pensylvanica
- Upright clump of big green lacy fronds
- Smells like freshly-mown hay when fronds are broken
HEIGHT: 90-130 cm · SPREAD: 60-90 cm
Onoclea sensibilis
SENSITIVE FERN
- Broad smooth pale green fronds have deeply grooved wavy margined leaflets
- Fronds emerge along long creeping rhizomes
- In the spring, emerging fronds may have a coppery tone
HEIGHT: 30-50 cm · SPREAD: 90-120 cm
Osmunda cinnamomea
CINNAMON FERN
- AKA Osmundastrum cinnamomeum
- Erect mid-green lanceolate fronds
- Narrow cinnamon-coloured fertile fronds appear in the spring
HEIGHT: 70-125 cm · SPREAD: 60-75 cm
Osmunda regalis
ROYAL FERN
- Unique widely spaced oblong leaflets with a distinct central vein
- Pale green leaves in sunlight
- Deeper green in shade with reddish stems
HEIGHT: 90-150 cm · SPREAD: 60-90 cm
Polypodium vulgare
WALL FERN
- Leathery deep green leaves
- Each leaflet has a blunt point
- Single fronds grow up the long rhizome
HEIGHT: 25-35 cm · SPREAD: 45-80 cm
Polystichum acrostichoides
CHRISTMAS FERN
- Glossy leathery deep green leaves
- Young fiddleheads are covered in fine silver hairs
- Upright clumping habit
HEIGHT: 45-60 cm · SPREAD: 30-45 cm
Polystichum polyblepharum
JAPANESE TASSEL FERN
- AKA Polystichum setosum
- Glossy dark green fronds
- Hairy copper-coloured stems
HEIGHT: 30-60 cm · SPREAD: 45-60 cm
Polystichum setiferum 'Herrenhausen'
SOFT SHIELD FERN
- Fine-textured mid-green fronds
- New fronds look like curled parsley
- Arching, clumping habit
HEIGHT: 30-50 cm · SPREAD: 30-45 cm
Pteridium aquilinum
BRACKEN FERN
- Sturdy bright green triangular fronds
- Found in large patches in wet or dry conditions
- Single fronds emerge from spreading rhizomes
HEIGHT: 40-80 cm · SPREAD: 80-100 cm
Thelypteris decursive-pinnata
JAPANESE BEECH FERN
- AKA Phegopteris decursive-pinnata
- Narrow pinnate fronds are dark green with bright green undersides
- Upright habit
HEIGHT: 45-70 cm · SPREAD: 45-60 cm
Thelypteris palustris
MARSH FERN
- AKA Dryopteris thelypteris, Thelypteris thelypteroides
- Single pale green pinnate feathery fronds
- Non-clumping form; it spreads by long creeping rhizomes
HEIGHT: 45-70 cm · SPREAD: 100-200 cm