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Asparagus densiflorus
Also called Cwebe asparagus fern, Asparagus Fern, Foxtail Asparagus, Sprenger's Asparagus, Foxtail Asparagus Fern, Foxtail Fern, Plume Asparagus Fern
In Singapore: Foxtail Fern, Plume Asparagus, 狐尾天门冬, Sprengeri Fern, Asparagus Fern (Grown in Singapore)
Sprenger's asparagus fern is an evergreen perennial from southern Africa, related to edible asparagus, grown mainly for its feathery foliage rather than a true fern. It cannot tolerate frost, so in cooler climates it is grown in pots or under glass.
Asparagus densiflorus (among several species colloquially called asparagus ferns; no relation to actual ferns), or the foxtail fern (asparagus) or plume fern, is a variable, evergreen-perennial plant related to cultivated, edible asparagus.
It is native to southern Africa, from Mozambique to South Africa, but is widely cultivated.
As it cannot tolerate frost, in temperate regions A.densiflorus is usually grown under glass. Numerous cultivars have been developed, of which the compact form 'Meyersii' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Its dense 50 cm (20 in) plumes of foliage are especially valued in flower arranging.
Asparagus densiflorus is native to the Cape Provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and the Northern Provinces in South Africa, Eswatini (Swaziland) and the Inhaca Islands of Mozambique.
Asparagus Fern · African asparagus · Asparagus albus · African asparagus fern · Burchells Asparagus · Cape Asparagus · Chinese Asparagus · Asparagus · Asparagus krebsianus · Fire Asparagus · Grey Asparagus · Asparagus multiflorus
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Asparagus densiflorus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
