Onoclea sensibilis - Sensitive Fern

Sizes available: 2 quart

Basics: zones 4-8, 12-48" x 12-36", part sun to full shade, moist and acidic soils but adaptable to some dryness in shade.

Common names: Sensitive Fern, Bead Fern, Sympathy Fern

Family: Onocleaceae

Origin/Distribution: central and eastern North America as well as eastern Asia, China, and parts of Russia. Native to Maine

Habitat: woodland thickets, low places, consistent wet meadow edges, stream and river banks, roadside ditches, open swamps and bogs

More: All ferns provide much needed cool, shady cover for toads, frogs, salamanders, and small mammals. Deer will use this fern as bedding, The fertile fronds persist through the winter. Turkeys eat these fronds and flower-arrangers will enjoy using them in bouquets. The fiddleheads are beautiful emerging in the spring. Sensitive Fern is rhizomatous and a strong spreader. It needs consistent moisture, especially in sunny positions and when supplied that can take quite a bit of sun. Has been used medicinally and is edible when cooked as a vegetable. It MUST be cooked. This plant is toxic if consumed raw. Proceed with knowledge, please. Onoclea sensibilis has been used medicinally.

Larval Host for the Silver-spotted Fern Moth, Callopistria cordata, and the Sensitive Fern Borer Moth, Papaipema inquaesita, both of which are native to Maine. Fern aphids, fern miners, and sawfly larvae feed on various parts of the plant (they gotta eat, too you know). The Royal Horticultural Society even likes it and has given it an Award of Garden Merit. 

Even more: The Wikipedia entry is fascinating and touches upon further information regarding parasitic fungi, bacteria, and mycorrhizal associations. Check it out.

Source: Van Berkum

Image credits: overall form courtesy Hornet Photography; fern with fertile frond prior to darkening courtesy of C.T. Johansson; leaf and frond, courtesy Fredlyfish - all via Creative Commons through the North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox