Ornamental · Onocleaceae
Ostrich Fern
Matteuccia struthiopteris
Set in shade and steady moisture, this hardy fern lifts a whorl of finely cut green fronds that flare open like the plumes of a shuttlecock.
Partial shade
Every 3–7 days
USDA 3–7
3–6 ft · 0.9–1.8 m
Overview
The ostrich fern grows a ring of tall, arching fronds that flare from a central crown into the upright, vase-like shape of a feathered shuttlecock. Each frond is a long green blade, broadest near the top and tapering to the base, cut into fine paired pinnae that give the whole plant a soft, plumed look. It is one of the easiest hardy ferns to grow, cold-hardy down to -40°F (-40°C) across zones 3 through 7, and in a damp, shaded spot it builds a lush green colony.
The fronds stand upright and reach 3 to 6 feet (90 to 180 cm) tall, their fresh green surfaces holding a graceful outward arch that fills a shaded corner. The plant belongs to cool, moist woodland and stream banks, and shade and water keep that green looking crisp rather than scorched. On hot, dry, exposed ground the blades tatter and brown at the edges.
In early spring the crown pushes up its most striking feature, the fiddlehead: a tight, tightly wound green coil wrapped in a thin brown papery husk, curled like the head of a violin. Foragers cut these coils as a spring vegetable, good to eat once properly cooked. Underground stolons snake out from the crown and surface as more coiled shoots, steadily widening the patch, so the fern needs room or a barrier.
Care
The short version: part to full shade over rich, consistently moist soil that never dries out keeps the fronds fresh green and crisp. Mulch to hold the damp and cool the roots, feed lightly in spring, and give the colony room or a root barrier to keep its underground spread in check.
Light
Give this fern part to full shade. It will take a little morning sun where the soil stays wet, but hot afternoon sun scorches the green blades brown at the tips and drives the plant into early dormancy.
Water
Keep the soil consistently moist to wet, never letting it dry out. The fern is built for streambanks and damp woodland, so its fronds crisp and tatter fast in hot, dry sites. In a normal spell, water every 3 to 7 days and lean wetter in heat.
Soil
Root it in dark, crumbly humus that stays spongy and damp, and it will sink happily into heavy, sticky clay as well. Anywhere across a pH of 5.0 to 7.0 feels right, so nearly any garden bed serves, provided the ground never dries out.
Temperature
Cold is no obstacle here, with hardiness running from -40°F to 86°F (-40°C to 30°C). The trouble is the top of that range, since sustained heat is what drives the green fronds into their summer slump.
Humidity
It likes the moist air of a shaded, damp spot, roughly 40% to 70%, which keeps the fine pinnae from drying. Outdoors that takes care of itself once the soil and shade are right.
Feeding
In spring, scatter a little balanced fertilizer over the crown, or just blanket the roots in dark compost or crumbly leaf-mold mulch. A fern set in rich woodland earth wants little beyond that.
Pruning
Pruning is minimal. Cut back any tattered or browned green fronds in late fall or early spring before the new coiled fiddleheads appear, and you can leave the stiff brown fertile fronds standing over winter for interest, then trim them in spring.
Repotting
No pot suits this fern. Rather than repotting, hoist and split a crowded colony every 3 to 4 years, once the packed crowns start pushing up thinner, feebler fronds.
Size & spacing
Mature fronds reach 3 to 6 feet (90 to 180 cm) tall in an upright, spreading crown, and a colony fills 2 to 8 feet (60 to 240 cm) wide over time. Plant with that eventual sprawl in mind, or hold it back with a root barrier.
When to plant
This is a spring fern with a quiet summer. Set new plants out in spring once the frost has passed, or in early fall, and cut the tight coiled fiddleheads in early spring as the crowns push up but before the fronds unfurl into their full plumes. Expect the green blades to tire and brown at the edges by midsummer as the plant eases into its natural rest.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: Spring after frost, or early fall
- Harvest: Non-flowering; harvest fiddleheads in early spring as the coiled crowns emerge, before the fronds unfurl
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 3–7
Temperature: down to -40°C
Troubleshooting
An ostrich fern has few real problems, and most of what looks wrong is just the fronds reacting to heat or the crown reaching for more room underground. Look closely at the signs below before you reach for any fix. More often than not the answer is shade, water, or a spade.
New coiled crowns surfacing away from the clump
Those far-flung shoots are the fern's spreading habit, not a disease. Underground stolons snake outward and push up new coiled fiddlehead crowns well beyond the parent, and a vigorous colony keeps thickening. Dig the stray crowns free in spring or fall, or sink a deep root barrier to stop the runners at a line.
Fix:
- Dig out unwanted crowns and runners in spring or fall
- Install a physical root barrier to contain the colony
- Divide and relocate or discard excess crowns
Fronds browned and frayed at the edges by midsummer
Part of the fading green is summer dormancy, the way an ostrich fern quietly powers down as the heat builds. The rest is heat and drought stress, which crisps the edges and tatters the fronds where too much sun meets soil gone dry. Water it deeply, lay mulch over the roots to trap the damp and cool them, and next spring the crown throws up a fresh whorl of fronds.
Fix:
- Water deeply to keep soil consistently moist
- Mulch to retain moisture and cool the roots
- Provide more shade in hot climates
- Remove tattered fronds; the plant rebounds from the crown the following spring
Toxicity
Good news for a household with animals: the ostrich fern carries no known toxins and isn't flagged as a poison to pets or livestock. Its coiled fiddleheads are even eaten by people, though only after a thorough cook. The one real caution here is about cooking your own foraged fiddleheads, not about your pets brushing against the fronds.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
No poisoning of cats is documented for this fern, so a curious bite of a green frond does no harm. A cat that strips down a lot of any greenery may cough some back up or pass a soft stool.
Dogs None
Dogs have no known poisoning from this fern. A chewed frond, torn and stringy in the mouth, does little beyond leaving a sensitive stomach off for about a day.
Horses None
There is no record of ostrich fern harming horses. It is not the coarse bracken that causes pasture trouble, so a horse cropping the fronds has nothing to fear from them.
Rabbits None
Rabbits can nibble the soft green fronds with no known ill effect. As with any new green, offer it slowly so their gut has time to adjust.
Livestock None
Cattle, goats, and sheep can graze around an ostrich fern safely, since its fronds carry none of the toxins found in bracken. A mouthful of the leaves poses no threat.
Birds None
No toxicity is reported for birds, whether pet or backyard flock. A hen that pecks at the fine green pinnae is in no danger.
People None
The young fiddleheads, tight bright-green coils, are a prized spring vegetable once cooked through. Boil them for 15 minutes or steam them for 10 to 12, since raw or barely cooked fiddleheads can make you sick.
No special contact precautions are documented. If foraging fiddleheads for food, rub off the brown papery husk, wash, and cook thoroughly (boil 15 minutes or steam 10-12 minutes); never eat them raw or merely sauteed/stir-fried/microwaved.
Varieties
Most gardens grow the plain species, but a few selections turn up when you want larger, taller plumes or the true native form. These are the ones worth knowing by name.
'The King'
A supersized selection carrying a heavy crown and fronds about half again as large, its plumes sometimes towering close to 7 feet tall.
'Jumbo'
A vigorous large-fronded form grown for the biggest, broadest shuttlecock of foliage the plant can throw up.
subsp./var. pensylvanica
The North American native form of the species, set apart from the Eurasian populations of the same fern.
How to propagate
Multiplying an ostrich fern takes almost no skill, since the plant is already cloning itself underground and only asks you to lift the surfaced crowns and move them.
DivisionEasy
Spring as crowns emerge, or early fall · 1 to 2 growing seasons
Lift and split the crowns as their tight coils break the soil in spring, or wait for early fall. The fern does much of the work itself, running underground stolons that surface as offset crowns you can slice cleanly away and replant. Give a transplant 1 to 2 growing seasons to root down and start unfurling full-sized fronds. In the wild it self-sows from the fine spores held on the stiff brown fertile fronds, but at home division is almost always the way to go.
Myths
A raw fiddlehead belongs on the plate, no different from a tender spring salad leaf.
Raw and undercooked fiddleheads have caused foodborne-illness outbreaks across the US and Canada since 1994, with nausea, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, and headaches. Rub the brown papery husk off the tight green coil, then boil them 15 minutes or steam them 10 to 12 minutes. A quick saute, stir-fry, or microwave leaves them undercooked at the core.
The coiled fiddleheads of every fern are good eating.
Only the ostrich fern's coiled fiddleheads are recommended for the table, and only after a full cook. Bracken and other ferns can be toxic or even cancer-causing, so pinning down the plant by its features matters before anything goes in the pot.
Ostrich fern originates in Eurasia and keeps no home in North America.
The fern is native to both Eurasia and North America. The home-grown form even carries its own name, M. struthiopteris subsp./var. pensylvanica.