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Phlox Subulata (moss pink) in landscape. Photo © Elaine Mills
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Athyrium asplenioides ([Southern] Lady Fern)

Ramenta on the unfurling fiddlehead Athyrium asplenioides
Bipinnate-pinnatifid frond dissection of Athyrium asplenioides
Fronds of monomorphic Athyrium asplenioides
Athyrium asplenioides, (Southern) Lady Fern Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2015-04-20, National Arboretum.
Underside of fertile pinnae of Athyrium asplenioides

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Lady Fern (formerly A. filix-femina) typically grows in wooded ravines, moist woods, and floodplains from southern New England to the southern United Sates. This native is common throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region, except for northern/northeastern Pennsylvania where it is mostly absent. The delicate and graceful appearance of feathery fronds gives rise to its name. Fern Pinnae (upper side/underside w/ sori), Clump Height: 1–3 feet Spread: 1–21⁄2 feet Bloom Color: Non-flowering Characteristics Deciduous perennial in whorled clumps Light green, finely divided, arching fronds with reddish-green growth in spring Sori containing spores form on undersides of pinnae (leaflets) Continues to send up fiddleheads until frost Stalks are dark red at maturity Spreads by rhizome, sometimes aggressively Attributes Tolerates drier soil than some other ferns, dense shade, and rabbits; no serious pests or diseases; deer rarely damage; low maintenance Therapeutic uses Large colonies provide cover for wildlife Growing and Maintenance Tips Soil Requirements: Rich, well-drained Light Requirements: Partial Shade, Shade Water Requirements: Moist, Wet Shelter from wind so that fronds do not break Divide clumps in spring every few years to reposition crowns at soil level Use in large-scale rain or woodland gardens Hardiness: USDA Zones 4–8 Excellent Replacement for Hedera helix - English Ivy Liriope spicata - Creeping Lily-Turf Vinca minor - Periwinkle developed by Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, serving Arlington and Alexandria Images by Mary Free (top left), Quarry Shade Garden and by Elaine Mills, Meadowlark Botanical Gardens

Tried and True Native Plant Selections
for the Mid-Atlantic

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Athyrium asplenioides ([Southern] Lady Fern)

Lady Fern (formerly A. filix-femina) typically grows in wooded ravines, moist woods, and floodplains from southern New England to the southern United States. This native is common throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region, except for northern/northeastern Pennsylvania where it is mostly absent. The delicate and graceful appearance of feathery fronds gives rise to its name.

Learn more about other Mid-Atlantic plants: 
Tried and True Native Plant Fact Sheets

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