Ostrich Fern
Matteuccia struthiopteris
EdibleZones 3–7herbgroundcover
Matteuccia is a genus of ferns with one species: Matteuccia struthiopteris. The species epithet struthiopteris comes from Ancient Greek words στρουθίων (strouthíōn) "ostrich" and πτερίς (pterís) "fern".
Description from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
⚠ Safety
Only ostrich-fern fiddleheads, thoroughly cooked, are safe; never eat fern fronds raw, and don't confuse with other ferns.
At a glance
- Sunlight
- Deep shade
- Water need
- High
- Mature height
- 1.2 m
- Maintenance
- Low
- Hardiness
- USDA 3–7
- Layers
- herb, groundcover
Functional roles
foodgroundcover
Propagation
How to make more of this plant for free — the permaculture way.
divisioneasy
When: Divide / lift offsets spring
Spring fiddleheads are a delicacy; spreads to carpet damp shade.
Where to get it
Read more
Seed data pending expert review. Identification photo and description are sourced from Wikipedia/Wikimedia; always confirm a plant in person before eating any part of it.