Jan–MarApr–JunJul–SepOct–Dec
Planting
Days to maturity
Seasonal yields
Sow indoors · Direct sow · Transplant outdoors
← Explore Plants
Plant · P-309
Bracken Fern
Pteridium aquilinum
Bracken Fern is one of the most dangerous plants a farm can host: raw leaves and roots deplete vitamin B1, the spores and fronds carry a carcinogen linked to bladder and intestinal cancer, and that toxin is water-soluble enough to turn up in streams and groundwater near where it grows. It is also aggressive and self-sustaining once established, rooting up to ten feet deep and tolerating dry, moist or wet ground across a native range spanning nearly every US state and Canadian province. Despite the toxicity it has real value as a potash-rich fertilizer source, thatch, mulch, dye and tinder - but it needs acid, sandy soil below pH 6.8, and will not grow on limestone or alkaline clay.
Record at a glance
Growing profile
- Sun
- Full Sun · Partial Sun · Shade
- USDA zone
- USDA 3–10
- Soil
- Sand · Loam · Clay
- Moisture
- Dry · Moderate · Moist · Wet
Vertical layer
Herbaceous- Soil pH
- 4–6
- Plant type
- Perennial
- Mature height
- 3–4 ft
- Mature spread
- 4–5 ft
- Plant spacing
- 2–4 ft
- Root type
- Rhizome
- Spread pattern
- Both
Keep exploring
Similar plants
Discover more plants with shared forest layers or growing conditions.
Adzuki Bean
Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi & H.Ohashi
Adzuki is the odd one out among the beans in this group: a very hot summer is actively too hot for it, since heat above about 35C damages…
Herbaceous · USDA 3–11
African Eggplant
Solanum aethiopicum
African Eggplant, also called gboma or scarlet eggplant, is a West and Central African relative of eggplant that gives two harvests from one…
Herbaceous · USDA 8–12
Agrimony
Agrimonia eupatoria
Agrimony is a slender herbaceous perennial of sunny, disturbed ground across Europe and western Asia, grown mainly for the tannin-rich leaves…
Herbaceous · USDA 5–9
Alfalfa
Medicago sativa
Alfalfa is a deep-rooted perennial legume grown worldwide as one of the richest forage crops available, its taproot running six metres or…
Herbaceous · USDA 4–11
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera
Aloe Vera is a stemless, clump-forming succulent with thick, spiny-edged leaves that store a clear gel used to soothe burns, wounds and skin…
Herbaceous · USDA 10–12
Alsike Clover
Trifolium hybridum
Alsike Clover fixes nitrogen in wet, acid ground too cold and heavy for red clover to thrive in, and its flowers keep bees working all season…
Herbaceous · USDA 5–9
The deeper layer
Plan what comes next.
- Primary
- Locked ecological function
- Secondary
- Locked ecological function
- Byproduct
- Locked ecological function
Behind the record
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference