Giant Chain Fern, Woodwardia fimbriata

About Giant Chain Fern (Woodwardia fimbriata) 53 Nurseries Carry This Plant

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Giant Chain Fern (Woodwardia fimbriata) is a species of fern known by the common name giant chain fern. It is native to the forests of the west coast of North America, and is the largest fern in North America, with very long fronds.

The spore-producing dots on the back of its fronds are short but broad and are arranged in neat lines, the characteristic that gives the chain ferns their name. The chain shape is visible on both surface and underside of each leaflet. This fern can be either evergreen or summer deciduous depending on its growing conditions.

Plant Description

Plant Type

Fern

Size

4 - 6 ft tall
4 - 6 ft wide

Form

Fountain

Growth Rate

Moderate

Dormancy

Evergreen, Summer Semi-Deciduous

Fragrance

Slight

Landscaping Information

Sun

Full Shade, Part Shade

Moisture

Moderate - High

Summer Irrigation

Max 1x / week once established

Nurseries

Carried by 53

Ease of Care

Very Easy

Cold Tolerance

Tolerates cold to 0 - 10° F

Soil Drainage

Fast

Soil Description

Prefers moist, fertile soil with good drainage. Soil PH: 5 - 7

Common uses

Hedges, Deer Resistant

Companion Plants

Trees: Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa), Tanoak (Notholithocarpus densiflorus), Madrone (Arbutus menziesii), Oak (Quercus spp.), Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), Dogwood (Cornus spp.) Other Plants: Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum spp., Deer Fern (Blechnum spicant), Horsetail (Equisetum spp.), Polypody Fern (Polypodium spp.), Sword Fern (Polystichum spp.), Meadow Rue (Thalicturm spp.), Yerba Buena (Clinopodium douglasii), Western Columbine (Aquilegia formosa), Monkeyflower (Mimulus cardinalis or guttatus)

Maintenance

Remove dry fronds to improve appearance and encourage new growth

Sunset Zones?

2, 3, 4*, 5*, 6*, 7*, 8, 9, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

Natural Setting

Site Type

Forests, seeps or near springs in shade or part shade

Climate

Annual Precipitation: 5.6" - 95.5", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 2.95", Coldest Month: 33.5" - 57.8", Hottest Month: 56.3" - 86.4", Humidity: 0.24" - 37.29", Elevation: -293" - 7677"

Alternative Names

Common Names: Giant Chainfern

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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links: Jepson eFlora Taxon Page CalPhotos Wikipedia Calflora

Giant Chain Fern

Woodwardia fimbriata

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Giant Chain FernWoodwardia fimbriata

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Giant Chain Fern

Woodwardia fimbriata