Christmas Fern

There lives in the woods of the Southeastern U.S. a large and hardy evergreen fern known as Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides). Range maps show that it has been reported in almost every county in Georgia as well in most counties in nearby states. This plant is so ubiquitous near me that we are surprised when we don’t find it on sites designated for plant rescues.

Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides)

Christmas fern is happy in dry shade, a trait that is sure to endear it to many a homeowner if they only knew. My backyard is full of it but the area near the house didn’t have it when I moved here. The ferns were probably cleared out during construction. I have since added them back here and there, often first using them to define the edges of pathways through the area and then filling in more as I get them from plant rescues.

A nicely designed use of Christmas fern at McFarlane Nature Park

A sweep of Christmas ferns in a landscaped garden

They transplant so easily. A friend of mine once collected 100 of them from rescues and then used them to plant into a sloped area where she’d cleared out English ivy. I like to plant young ones into small spaces and then watch them grow to fill it up like they might do in a natural crevice in the woods. They also grow easily from spores, especially if the area has a little moss (moss is like nature’s germination nursery, especially for ferns). I’m sure that I’m one of the few people that have ferns in the lawn (I do transplant them out of the lawn when they get too big).

Christmas ferns in my lawn

A bit of moss is perfect for germination

Christmas fern in snow (2017)

The common name of this fern probably refers to its evergreen presence at Christmas time. I certainly enjoy seeing its greenery during the winter months.

I especially welcome the sight of a green frond sticking out of one of our light snowfalls. That just seems so Southern to me – “I have snow, but I still have green plants!”


By mid-March, the fronds from the previous year are near the end of their life and hairy, golden fiddleheads rise up from the center of the clump to replace them. See a picture of that and read more about other landscape-worthy native Georgia ferns at my earlier blog post.

A beautiful natural sweep of Christmas fern at Red Top Mountain State Park