Polystichum acrostichoides

Polystichum acrostichoides: Evergreen Fronds Still Green at Christmas

Deep, glossy green fronds that stay put all winter while everything else in the shade bed packs up and leaves. This native fern is the one decoration you NEVER HAVE TO TAKE DOWN.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Polystichum acrostichoides
• Common Name: Christmas Fern
• Height: 30–60 cm (1–2 ft)
• Spread: 45–60 cm (18–24 in)
• Flowers: None; ferns reproduce by spores, carried on the undersides of the frond tips
• Foliage: Evergreen, leathery, lance-shaped fronds of deep glossy green; silvery fiddleheads in spring
• Features: Evergreen, tolerates dry shade once established

Where to Plant: Plant it under trees, on shady slopes, along woodland paths or anywhere you want year-round green at ground level. Its roots help hold soil on banks, and it copes with dry shade once settled.

Companion Plants: Plant Christmas fern in a shady native woodland bed where its evergreen fronds sit among spring wildflowers. Asarum canadense carpets the front at 10 to 15 cm with heart-shaped native leaves. Uvularia grandiflora opens nodding yellow bellwort at 30 to 45 cm in April and May. Ligularia 'Othello' adds golden-orange daisies over purple-backed leaves at 90 to 120 cm from July to September. Carex rosea fills in with a fine native sedge at 30 cm.

Plant Care: Plant in part to full shade in well-drained, humus-rich soil. It prefers slightly acidic conditions and handles rocky or sandy ground. Keep it watered through the first season; after that it copes with dry shade better than most ferns. Avoid soggy spots, since wet soil can rot the crown. No cutting back is needed in fall. In early spring, before the new fiddleheads unroll, snip off old fronds that look tattered. The clump grows slowly wider over time. Divide in spring if you want more plants.

History: The Christmas fern is native to eastern North America, from southern Canada, including Ontario and Quebec, south to northeastern Mexico. The common name comes from its fronds staying green through the holidays, and many people think each leaflet looks like a tiny Christmas stocking.

Final Thoughts: Dry shade, deer, total neglect? It's handled worse at the in-laws. Plant a few under the maples. EVERGREEN AND OVER IT.