Species Blechnum spicant (Deer Fern, Hard Fern) | Known

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Names

Scientific name: Blechnum spicant
Common name: Deer Fern, Hard Fern

Measurements

Height: 0 - 4 ft
Spread: 12 - 24 in
Spacing: 24 in
Growth Rate: Slow

Requirements

Hardiness zones: 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
Sunlight: Partial Shade, Full Shade
Soil Drainage: Moist but Well-drained
Soil type: Loam, Sand
Soil pH: Strongly acidic (5.1 - 5.5), Moderately acidic (5.6 - 6.0)

Physical Traits

Lifecycle: Perennial
Leaf lifecycle: Evergreen broadleaf
Foliage color: Medium Green
Bloom time: Winter
Seasons of interest: Spring, Summer, Winter
Propagation methods: Spores, Division
Attracts: Birds

Taxonomy

Taxonomic Rank: Species
Author: (L.) Roth
Publication: Ann. Bot. (Usteri) 10(4): 56 (1794).

Superior Taxa

Kingdom: Plantae
Subkingdom: Pteridobiotina
Phylum: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Subclass: Polypodiidae
Order: Polypodiales
Family: Blechnaceae
Subfamily: Blechnoideae
Genus: Blechnum

Synonyms

Struthiopteris japanensis Acrostichum nemorale Blechnum doodioides Homophyllum blechnoides Spicanta borealis Blechnum heterophyllum Struthiopteris spicant Acrostichum spicant Onoclea spicant Osmunda borealis Asplenium spicant Blechnum boreale Lomaria borealis Lonchitis-aspera spicant Osmunda spicant Lomaria spicant f. serrulatum Blechnum spicant var. elongata Blechnum spicant Lomaria crenata Struthiopteris spicant var. crenata Lomaria spicant

References

Blechnum spicant - Plant Finder, Missouri Botanical Garden, https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=242345, accessed November 10, 2024

Deer Fern, Calscape, https://calscape.org/Blechnum-spicant-(Deer-Fern), accessed November 10, 2024

Blechnum spicant (Hard Fern), Gardenia, https://www.gardenia.net/plant/blechnum-spicant-hard-fern, accessed November 10, 2024

Blechnum spicant (Deer Fern, Hard Fern) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, NC State Extension, https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/blechnum-spicant/, accessed November 10, 2024

Hard Fern (Blechnum spicant) - British Plants, Woodland Trust, https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/plants/ferns/hard-fern/, accessed November 10, 2024

Blechnum spicant, U.S. Forest Service, https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/fern/blespi/all.html, accessed November 10, 2024

World Flora Online, http://www.worldfloraonline.org/, accessed June 20, 2024