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Japanese Holly-fern

Cyrtomium falcatum

Found in loess bluffs, calcareous outcrops, ditches, disturbed swamps, moist ravines, old mortar of brick or stone walls. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 82%

Height
17–24 inches
Spread
2–3 feet
Light
Dappled sunlight, Deep shade, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist
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At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
June to October

Recorded in 3 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 4

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Cedar glade in the Pennyroyal Plain, Simpson County
Limestone cedar glade. Shown: Pennyroyal Plain, Simpson County, Kentucky, a neighboring state.Cedar glade in the Pennyroyal Plain, Simpson County, Mason Brock (Masebrock), undated. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina
Named place / source context. Shown: Great Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, as titled by Museum of Fine Arts Boston; nineteenth-century artistic interpretation, a neighboring state.View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, Regis Francois Gignoux, 1850. Public domain. Source record.

Moist forests

Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland
Regional / representative. Shown: Mountains of North and South Carolina; exact site not identified, a neighboring state.Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Polystichum

  • Callopistria floridensisFlorida Fern Caterpillar
  • Decantha boreasellaReticulated Decantha Moth
  • Herpetogramma aeglealisSerpentine Webworm
  • Phlogophora periculosaBrown Angle Shades
  • Herpetogramma sphingealis
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Polystichum

  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Lagopus lagopusWillow Ptarmigan
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Dryopteridaceae
Hardiness
Zones 7a–10b
Soil pH
Acidic to alkaline

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Japanese Holly fern; Polystichum falcatum; fern

Conservation status

Virginia rankSNA
Global rankGNR
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Sources