Polystichum polyblepharum (Japanese Tassel Fern) – Evergreen Fern (Set of 3 or 6)

Glossy dark green fronds arching from a central crown, with new growth that unfurls like a tassel.

The Japanese tassel fern is one of the most attractive evergreen ferns we grow, and it holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Each spring the new fronds rise and turn back on themselves in a tassel before opening out into bipinnate leaves with a lacquered sheen.

It is fully hardy across Britain and does its best work in sheltered, shaded places where other plants give up: a woodland garden, a shady border, a north facing bed or a large container. Give it humus rich soil that drains freely and keep it out of standing winter wet.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Japanese tassel fern, tassel fern
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: 30cm to 60cm tall by 30cm to 60cm wide
• Growth Habit: Compact and clump forming, with gracefully arching fronds
• Perfect For: Woodland gardens, shaded borders, underplanting, containers and north facing beds
• Foliage: Glossy, dark green, bipinnate fronds, held all year
• Flowering Time: None. Ferns carry no flowers and spread by spores.
• Planting Position: Partial shade to full shade, sheltered from wind. Grows well in a container.
• Soil Type: Humus rich soil that drains freely. It resents sitting wet through winter, so avoid heavy, waterlogged ground.
• Hardiness: Fully hardy. It comes through a British winter outdoors without protection.
• Maintenance: Low. Cut away old or tired fronds in early spring before the new ones unfurl, and mulch in spring to hold moisture in.
• Seasonal Interest: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.
• Type: Hardy evergreen fern, holder of the RHS Award of Garden Merit