Hay Scented Fern

Hay Scented Fern - Dennstaedtia punctilobula is a Beautiful, Lacy Plant

Hay-scented fern (Dennstaedtia punctiloba) thrives in zones 3-8. This beautiful lacy plant gets to a height of two feet tall and reaches up to four feet wide. The hay-scented fern is yellowish green with feather-like fronds. The plant appears greener during the spring and summer and turns yellowish during the autumn. The hay-scented fern also has small dots on the back of the blades of the plant. The stalk below the edge of the fern appears dark brown and covered with white hairs. Triangular fronds are another distinguishing characteristic of the hay-scented greenery.

The hay-scented fern is a deciduous plant that turns a lovely shade of golden yellow in the autumn. The plant produces the scent of newly mown hay when if crushed or when a person walks on it. It reproduces through spreading roots or rhizomes. Planting hay-scented ferns about 18 inches apart allow them to grow and fill in an area.

 Hay Scented Ferns  Prefers Partially Shaded Areas 

Like most ferns, the hay-scented fern prefers partially shady areas. It requires slightly acidic soil. The hay-scented fern thrives where it is planted, multiplies quickly, and repels deer. Growing this fern provides a lovely carpeted area under shrubs and around walkways. When a person plants this fern, it soon fills in the space of landscaping that discourages weeds from coming up and spreading.

Attracts Butterflies and Birds
Planting the hay-scented fern encourages the appearance of Black Swallowtail, Eastern Tailed Blue and Orange Sulphur butterflies as well as birds like the Savannah Sparrow, American Goldfinch and Field Sparrows.

Once the plant becomes established, and the roots take hold, there's not a lot of work to do to care for these ferns. Adding a gentle fertilizer, such as fish emulsion, keeps the greenery well fed and growing profusely. The plant makes a lovely border for a flower bed or another area of the garden. Hay-scented ferns live for an average of ten years and are very hardy.

 The Hay Scented Fern is typically seen in the eastern areas of the United States and often grows in zones 3 to 8. The fern is small as it tends to reach a maximum height of about two feet. However, it can spread outward to about three feet, depending on other plants located nearby. Although there aren't any flowers on the fern, it does showcase a stunning light green color that sometimes has dark green striations through the leaves. The Hay Scented Fern grows best in shady areas and out of direct sunlight. 

  Leaves on the fern offer a fragrant scent that can compare to hay. You'll usually notice this scent more in the fall than you would during other times of the year. The fern thrives in soil that is rich and moist, and that provides an abundance of nutrients. Since the fern grows closer to the ground, it provides more shelter for insects and small animals that seek out its scent. You'll usually see the fern in wooded areas and along riverbanks as it enjoys being near water sources so that it can get the nutrients that it needs to grow that it might not always get from the sun.

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