Close Ostrich Fern

Ostrich Fern
Common Name: Ostrich Fern
Scientific Name: Matteucia struthiopteris
Category: Fern
Habit: Deciduous
Form: Clump-forming, upright to arching, rhizomatous
Bloom Color: Non-flowering
Foliage Description: The showy parts of this fern are the finely dissected, medium green, vegetative (sterile) fronds which, as the common name suggests, exhibit the feathery appearance of long ostrich plumes. The vegetative fronds emerge at the narrow base of the clumps in spring as the familiar "fiddleheads" from where they unfurl to a maximum length of 4 ft.. These vegetative fronds usually depreciate as the summer proceeds, begin to look rather tattered by early fall and finally lose their leaflets later in the fall as the plant goes dormant for the winter. The sterile fronds form a huge vase-like crown around the much less showy fertile fronds which are erect, spike-like and dark brown. The fertile fronds arise in mid-summer and persist through the winter.
Height of Plant: 3-6 ft.
Spread of Plant: 5-8 ft.
Hardiness: USDA Zones 3-7
Light Requirements: Part shade to full shade
Water Usage: Medium to wet
Soil Type: Easily grown in averagesoils. Best in rich soils with constant moisture. Soil must never be allowed to dry out.
Native Range: Europe, Eastern Asia, Estern North America
Maintenance: Medium
Location: Shade Garden