Comptonia peregringa | sweet fern

ARCHIVED PLANT. This page serves as reference only. We are no longer propagating this plant.

Sweet Fern is not a fern, but a deciduous shrub in the bay family. It forms a moderately-sized mound of aromatic attractive, fern-like foliage. Small yellow-green flowers appear in late spring or early summer. They are nothing special, but they do give way to brownish seed capsules which persist on the plant through winter. Foliage turns a orangey-brown in fall.

This East Coast native shrub grows in just about any condition, but prefers acidic, sandy loam in full sun. It thrives in soils with low-fertility.

This is an incredibly easy to grow ground cover that works well for bank stabilization, erosion control, and naturalistic plantings. It does not transplant well, but it does rapidly form colonies.

Host plant of the Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus). See Image 4.

Zones: 2 to 6
Family: Myricaceae
Type: Deciduous Shrub
Height: 2 to 5 ft.
Spread: 4 to 8 ft.
Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade
Soil Conditions: Wet to dry
Bloom Time: April to May
Bloom Color: Yellowish-green

Special Characteristics

Fragrant
Groundcover

image credits

Images 1 (form) Sten Porse, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Image 2 (buds) peganum from Small Dole, England, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Image 3 (fall color) Photo by Skyler Ewing
Image 4 (Grey hairstreak) by Ali McEnhill at the Old Dairy