Hay-scented fern
Dennstaedtia punctilobula · Dennstaedtiaceae
Soft, lacy, yellow-green fronds that smell of new-mown hay when brushed, and turn gold in autumn. It spreads into large, dense colonies, even in dry, poor soil.
- Size
- 24 in tall, 3 ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around hay-scented fern
The planner designed this bed around hay-scented fern when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why hay-scented fern stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Hay-scented fern × 3, green leaves
- 2 Wherry's foamflower × 6, white
- 3 Leadwort × 21, blue
- 4 Northern sea oats × 5, tan
- 5 Bicolor monkshood × 4, blue
- 6 Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' × 1, pink
- 7 Snowdrop × 5, white
- 8 Hardy cyclamen × 8, pink
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
- The only fine leaves here. The rest are medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
Why here
- In the middle. At 24 in it is the step between leadwort (10 in) in front and bicolor monkshood (4 ft) behind: each is seen over the one before.
- 3 plants in one group. Massed, one kind reads as a single shape. Scattered, it would look spotty.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, spring to frost. They cover the 13 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 5 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. It is planted in layers: about 8 in at the front, 18 in in the middle and 3½ ft at the back. Neither end outweighs the other: the visual weight is split 53 to 47, left to right.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 2 Good, 2 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Bicolor monkshood is highly poisonous to people, dogs, cats and horses. Hay-scented fern spreads aggressively.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where hay-scented fern goes in a border
At 24 in it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium short (18 to 24 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
The solution for big, difficult areas: it grows in sun or shade, dry or moist, and deer and rabbits leave it alone. It is too vigorous for a mixed bed.
- Covering large areas of dry shade or slopes
- Holding banks
- Places where deer eat everything else
What to plant with hay-scented fern
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Christmas fern.
- Bigroot cranesbill: adds the flowers, mid May to late June.
- Solomon's seal: adds the flowers, early May to late May.
Questions about hay-scented fern
Does hay-scented fern need sun or shade?
Hay-scented fern grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does hay-scented fern grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 8. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
How far apart should hay-scented fern be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3 ft (90 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 24 in (60 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many hay-scented fern plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Is hay-scented fern poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat hay-scented fern?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer and rabbits. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
Will hay-scented fern spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is high. Spreads aggressively by underground runners and is hard to remove once established. Plant it only where it can be contained.
What does hay-scented fern look like in winter?
Hay-scented fern dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
In these guides
- Plants for dry shade
- Salt-tolerant plants for roadsides and coasts
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Groundcover plants
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Fern
- Size
- 24 in (60 cm) tall, 3 ft (90 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium short (18 to 24 in)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- None: grown for its foliage
- Leaves
- Fine texture, herbaceous; green
- Shape
- Upright, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Dennstaedtiaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern Canada to U.S.A
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits, drought, salt
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.