Ostrich Fern - Matteuccia struthiopteris
Ostrich Fern | This is a great shade lover that qualifies as a must have in your garden. Carefree, deer resistant and lovely foliage.
| Ostrich Fern | Perennial |
|---|---|
| Bloom Time | Late Summer to Fall |
| Light | Part Sun To Full Shade |
| Water | Average to Rich -Moist |
| Diseases | Relatively Disease Free |
| Pests | Relatively Pest Free |
| Propagation | Divisions, Spores |
| Color | Brown Fronds |
| Zones | 2 - 8 |
| Features | Attractive Foliage,Drought Tolerant,Tolerates Wet Soil,Deer Resistant,Easy to Grow |
Ostrich Fern: Tall fern with feather-like fronds. delightful yellow-green leaves. Features: -Color: Green. -Flowering time: April-November. -Size: 4"-5". -Ships in: Fall. -Deer resistant:
One of my all time favorites in the shade garden has been the Ostrich Fern. I planted a couple of beds of these a few years back and they are quite a striking sight in the border.
Just like huge ostrich feathers, the fronds tower above the border floor between 3 and 5 feet, an given the perfect conditions they have been known to grown to a towering 8 feet.
The spread rather quickly by sending out rhizomes, but I haven't found them to be a nuisance and are quite well behaved. If you want to make them more maintenance-free, you can encircle the bed with an aluminum edging, set into the soil about 6" and that will keep them well defined.
If you want to get the most out of your Ostrich ferns, plant them in an area full of humus of rotting leaves, peat and compost. They will practically jump out of the ground with this mixture if you keep it moist and it is in an area of partial to mostly shady.
I love seeing the large fiddle head fronds when they make their first appearance in the early spring. Note that the fronds are eatable as well.
Sow spores when ripe at 59°F (15°C).
Can also propagate by dividing clumps in spring.
Ostrich Fern: Foliage won’t fade or yellow—lasts all season long. Fronds stay full and fluffy, providing plenty of foundation coverage. Stands tall at the back of shady borders—3-4 ft. high! Bareroot. Zones 2-9.
Rush:
The cylindrical leaves of rushes make a fine contrast against taller ostrich ferns in damp places.
Iris:
The attractive yellow flowers and sword like foliage of yellow flag iris play off well against the ostrich fern's arching fronds, especially at pond or streamside..
Anemone:
In lightly shaded beds and borders, Japanese anemones produce their charming pink or white flowers above lobed foliage in late summer and fall. The dissected ostrich fern fronds provide an interesting counterpoint.
Ostrich Fern: This tall fern bears lovely feather like fronds all summer long. Delightful yellow green leaves with graceful arch. Grows in sun or shade.
These ferns make an ideal ground cover along shady garden paths. This will fill-in solid and not allow weed growth and as a bonus, they are deer resistant, which I treasure in the woods settings.
Try planting them along water features. They love the wet conditions and look great with rush plants, hosta and iris, which also crave the damp soils and shady conditions.
If you have a difficult hillside where other plants fail, give this fern a try. Just give it the shade it requires.
Another difficult area to plant many perennials is beneath solid canopy trees. Plant the fern in these conditions and you will see it thrive.
Ostrich Fern: As borders or backgrounds, our feathery ferns fill gardens with color, complexity, and depth, and are very easy to grow. Ostrich is tall and graceful (grows 3-5' tall). Plant in shade.
Spacing: Space 36" to 48" apart when planting.
Fertilizer: Fertilization is not generally required for good plant output.
Water/Soil Requirements: Humus soils with lots of organic matter is best. Keep the soil moist.
Pruning: Some species are known to spread fast because of the rhizomes that stretch out beneath the soil. Simply dig them up if they spread too far and you will have ideal planting stock for another bed.
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