Dryopteris erythrosora (S-E)

Common name: Autumn Fern

Description: This beautiful evergreen fern from East Asia offers exceptional year-round interest with its colourful new growth and glossy foliage. In spring, the new fronds emerge in stunning shades of coppery-pink to bronze-red, creating a spectacular display that is quite unlike typical ferns. As the fronds mature through summer, they transition through shades of bronze-green before settling into glossy dark green. The evergreen fronds provide excellent structure through winter, when they often develop attractive bronze tints in cold weather. The triangular fronds have a neat, symmetrical appearance and form attractive shuttlecock-shaped clumps. This is an exceptionally versatile and easy fern that thrives in typical garden conditions, making it ideal for woodland gardens, shaded borders, or underplanting beneath trees and shrubs. The colourful spring growth makes this one of the most ornamental ferns for British gardens.

Other benefits: colourful coppery-pink new growth, evergreen foliage, low maintenance, glossy fronds, winter interest

Wildlife attraction: provides shelter for ground-dwelling wildlife

Height & spread (approx.) at 10 years: 0.6m x 0.6m

Position: partial shade to full shade; tolerates deeper shade than many ferns

Soil pH: prefers neutral to slightly acidic conditions; adaptable to most soils

Moisture: moderate watering required; prefers consistently moist but well-drained soil; relatively drought tolerant once established

Winter hardiness: very cold hardy to -20°C