Japanese Sword Fern or Autumn Fern. I really consider this to be the king of the ferns. The new fronds in the spring are a burgundy-bronze and once they harden off become a glossy green and at maturity can reach to 24-30" in height or taller. Of all the evergreen ferns, it has the most "lacy" leaves. It can "re-spore" in the garden giving you little surprises in some dark corner. These can be easily moved to a another location. Give shade with adequate moisture and you won't be disappointed. One nice thing about ferns is that we haven't experienced any deer damage. Cold hardiness is listed as far north as zone 5, but in this zone its fronds will burn down in the winter to experience a quick resurgence in the spring. Here in our mid teens, we see no cold burn at all. In late winter remove aging fronds to give a more tidy appearance.
Zones 5-9
