Dryopteris marginalis

Marginal Wood Fern is a smallish ( 1.5 – 2 foot high), well behaved, evergreen fern found in shady, rocky slopes in most of eastern U.S. In North Carolina, is is found in mountain counties and a few piedmont counties. It is clump-forming and non-colonizing, propagated by root crown division and by spores.The fiddleheads of Marginal Wood Fern arising in spring are golden brown and furry, expanding into handsome, leathery, deeply green, arching fronds. In the garden it plays very well with wildflowers and offers cover for small critters. Marginal Wood Fern can thrive in both moist/well drained and somewhat dry locations that are shady or semi-shady. The common name of Marginal Wood Fern refers to the location of the sori or spore-containing structures on the very margins of the underside of the fronds.