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Polystichum acrostichoides
Also called Dagger Fern, Holly Fern
Christmas fern is a hardy, evergreen, clump-forming native fern of eastern North America, found in shady woodlands and on rocky slopes. It is grown for its tough, long-lasting dark green fronds, and it does best in shade with moist, well-drained soil.
Polystichum acrostichoides, commonly denominated Christmas fern, is a perennial, evergreen fern native to eastern North America, from Nova Scotia west to Minnesota and south to Florida and eastern Texas. It is one of the most common ferns in eastern North America, being found in moist and shady habitats in woodlands, stream banks and rocky slopes. The common name derives from the evergreen fronds, which are often still green at Christmas.
Christmas fern is popular in cultivation as an ornamental plant for gardens, including natural gardens, as it is easy to cultivate in a range of environments and soils. Being evergreen, it is sometimes used in winter-oriented garden design.
This fern can conserve soil and allay erosion of steep slopes. The fronds are semi-erect until the first killing frost, after which they lie prostrate on the ground and effectively hold in place the duff layer of the forest floor, enabling the gradual decomposition of the duff into humus, which in turn builds the soil.
P. acrostichoides is parasitized by the fungus Taphrina polystichi, which causes yellowish to whitish galls on the fronds.
Hard shield-fern · Western swordfern · Japanese Tassel Fern · Black Shield Fern · Soft Shield Fern · Korean rockfern · Hollyfern
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Polystichum acrostichoides 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.
