Rock polypody
Polypodium virginianum · Polypodiaceae
A small, leathery, evergreen fern that creeps over shaded boulders, ledges and mossy logs in a thin layer of leaf mould.
- Size
- 8 in tall, 12 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around rock polypody
The planner designed this bed around rock polypody 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 rock polypody stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Rock polypody × 15, dark green leaves
- 2 Bellflower 'Dickson's Gold' × 22, blue
- 3 Blue wood aster × 3, lavender
- 4 Tall astilbe 'Superba' × 3, purple
- 5 Bleeding heart × 1, pink
- 6 Lenten rose × 5, white
- 7 Hardy cyclamen × 3, pink
- 8 Winter aconite × 8, yellow
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
Why here
- Under the taller plants. It runs back between them as living mulch: there its job is to cover the soil, not to be looked at.
- 15 plants in 4 groups (5, 4, 3 and 3). Seen again further along, the same plant ties the bed together.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, all year. They cover the 7 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
- One of two evergreens. They are what the bed has to show from November to March.
Planned as an English border: 8 of the 9 groups (89%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The scheme leans cool (blue, lavender, purple and pink) and uses yellow for warmth, with white to calm things between them. The bed is tied together by its repeats: two kinds come round again along it, bellflower 'Dickson's Gold' and rock polypody.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where rock polypody goes in a border
At 8 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
It grows on rock, not in soil. Tuck pieces into crevices or onto a mossy boulder, and it will slowly sheet over the surface.
- Covering shaded boulders and ledges
- Rock gardens in shade
- Winter green
What to plant with rock polypody
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Woodland stonecrop: adds the flowers, late April to late May; low enough (4 in) to stand in front of it.
- Wild columbine: adds the flowers, early May to early June; tall enough (24 in) to stand behind it.
- Marginal wood fern: tall enough (24 in) to stand behind it.
Questions about rock polypody
Does rock polypody need sun or shade?
Rock polypody grows in 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 is one of the few that also put up with deep shade.
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled.
What zones does rock polypody 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 rock polypody be planted?
8 in (20 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 12 in (30 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 8 in (20 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many rock polypody plants do I need?
At 8 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 27 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 16 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 86 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 15 in four groups.
Is rock polypody 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 rock polypody?
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.
What does rock polypody look like in winter?
Rock polypody keeps its dark green leaves all winter, so it is one of the plants that hold a bed together from November to March, when the perennials have gone. It is grown for winter green as well.
Is rock polypody good for bees and butterflies?
Rock polypody is visited by songbirds.
It is native to the United States and Canada.
More Polypodium
- Common polypody Polypodium vulgare
In these guides
- Plants for deep shade
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Low plants for the front of a border
- Groundcover plants
- Evergreen perennials, ferns and grasses
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Fern (groundcover)
- Size
- 8 in (20 cm) tall, 12 in (30 cm) wide
- Plant
- 8 in (20 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- None: grown for its foliage
- Leaves
- Medium texture, evergreen; dark green
- Shape
- Mat-forming, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Lean, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Polypodiaceae
- Comes from
- Sub Arctic North America
- Attracts
- Songbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits, deep shade
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.