Native Ferns of New Zealand | NZ Native Plants

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Introduction

Overview

New Zealand’s native ferns range from delicate groundcovers to towering tree ferns and are found from damp lowland forests to windswept alpine gullies. They play a vital role in forest structure, sheltering seedlings, stabilising slopes, and creating rich habitat for invertebrates and birds. In gardens, ferns provide year‑round texture and thrive in shaded, moist positions with good organic matter and consistent moisture.

Adiantum Diaphanum

Small Maidenhair Fern

Adiantum diaphanum

Small Maidenhair Fern is resilient with notable evergreen foliage; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Giant Maidenhair (Adiantum formosum)

Giant Maidenhair

Adiantum formosum

Spectacular and large evergreen fern with delicate, airy foliage, native to North Island alluvial forests and gorges.

Adiantum Hispidulum

Rough Maidenhair Fern

Adiantum hispidulum

Rough Maidenhair Fern is resilient with notable shelter value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Asplenium Flabellifolium

Necklace Fern

Asplenium flabellifolium

Necklace Fern is fast-growing with notable restoration use; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Piripiri

Piripiri

Hymenophyllum sanguinolentum

Widespread and uniquely aromatic New Zealand filmy fern that forms dense, dark green mats in forest environments.

Shore Spleenwort

Shore Spleenwort

Asplenium obtusatum

Hardy coastal fern with thick fleshy fronds, built to withstand salt spray and exposed rocky environments.

Asplenium Flaccidum

Hanging Spleenwort

Asplenium flaccidum

Hanging Spleenwort is coastal-tolerant with notable evergreen foliage; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Asplenium Oblongifolium

Huruhuru-Whenua

Asplenium oblongifolium

Huruhuru-Whenua is wind-hardy with notable attractive form; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Asplenium Polyodon

Sickle Spleenwort

Asplenium polyodon

Sickle Spleenwort is resilient with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Poor Knights Spleenwort (Asplenium pauperequitum)

Poor Knights Spleenwort

Asplenium pauperequitum

A small, critically endangered native fern endemic to the Poor Knights and Chatham Islands, thriving in dark, damp rock overhangs.

Richard's Spleenwort (Asplenium richardii)

Richard's Spleenwort

Asplenium richardii

An endemic New Zealand fern with elegant, tripinnate fronds, thriving in montane to alpine environments.

Southern Shore Spleenwort (Asplenium scleroprium)

Southern Shore Spleenwort

Asplenium scleroprium

A hardy native fern with fleshy, deeply toothed fronds, uniquely adapted to the exposed coastal headlands of southern New Zealand.

Austroblechnum Lanceolatum

Lance Fern

Austroblechnum lanceolatum

Lance Fern is long-lived with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Austroblechnum Penna-marina

Alpine Water Fern

Austroblechnum penna-marina

Alpine Water Fern is wind-hardy with notable attractive form; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Nini (Blechnum chambersii)

Nini

Blechnum chambersii

A graceful native ground fern with deep green, lance-shaped fronds, forming lush rosettes in the dampest, most shaded niches of the New Zealand forest floor.

Crown Fern (Blechnum discolor)

Crown Fern

Blechnum discolor

Crown Fern is resilient with notable attractive form; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Blechnum Filiforme

Thread Fern

Blechnum filiforme

Thread Fern is coastal-tolerant with notable nectar for wildlife; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Hanging Hard Fern (Blechnum membranaceum)

Hanging Hard Fern

Blechnum membranaceum

A delicate and distinctive endemic New Zealand fern with deep green toothed fronds, thriving in the dampest, most shaded forest floor and streamside niches.

Swamp Kiokio (Blechnum minus)

Swamp Kiokio

Blechnum minus

A graceful native fern with arching green fronds and bronze-tinted new growth, thriving in New Zealand's wetlands and damp forest gullies.

Blechnum Novae-zelandiae

Kiokio

Blechnum novae-zelandiae

Kiokio is bird-attracting with notable attractive form; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Blechnum Procerum

Small Kiokio

Blechnum procerum

Small Kiokio is fast-growing with notable nectar for wildlife; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Green Bay Kiokio (Blechnum triangularifolium)

Green Bay Kiokio

Blechnum triangularifolium

A robust native fern with large, triangular fronds and upward-pointing sickle-shaped pinnae, specialized for base-rich coastal cliffs and banks.

Mountain Hard Fern (Blechnum vulcanicum)

Mountain Hard Fern

Blechnum vulcanicum

A hardy and structural native fern with distinctive triangular fronds, thriving on shaded rock faces and cool forest banks throughout New Zealand.

Moonwort (Botrychium lunaria)

Moonwort

Botrychium lunaria

A rare and critically endangered small fern, distinctive for its moon-shaped sterile fronds and reliance on specific microhabitats.

Parsley Fern (Botrychium australe)

Parsley Fern

Botrychium australe

A unique and seasonal succulent fern with parsley-like fronds, found in open grasslands and forest clearings from lowland to alpine regions.

River Fern (Cranfillia fluviatilis)

River Fern

Cranfillia fluviatilis

River Fern is a distinctive ground-hugging fern with a rosette of fronds, thriving in moist, shaded forest stream margins.

Pellaea Rotundifolia

Button Fern

Pellaea rotundifolia

Button Fern is coastal-tolerant with notable shelter value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Pteris Tremula

Shaking Brake

Pteris tremula

Shaking Brake is bird-attracting with notable shelter value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Polystichum Richardii

Richard's Shield Fern

Polystichum richardii

Richard's Shield Fern is coastal-tolerant with notable attractive form; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Sphaeropteris Medullaris

Mamaku

Sphaeropteris medullaris

Mamaku is long-lived with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Tmesipteris Elongata

Long Fork Fern

Tmesipteris elongata

Long Fork Fern is coastal-tolerant with notable evergreen foliage; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Fork Fern

Fork Fern

Tmesipteris tannensis

Unique and ancient epiphytic fern ally, typically found hanging from the moisture-rich trunks of forest tree ferns.

Hymenophyllum Nephrophyllum

Kidney Fern

Hymenophyllum nephrophyllum

Kidney Fern is coastal-tolerant with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Gleichenia Dicarpa

Pouched Coral Fern

Gleichenia dicarpa

Pouched Coral Fern is resilient with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Hymenophyllum Demissum

Drooping Filmy Fern

Hymenophyllum demissum

Drooping Filmy Fern is resilient with notable evergreen foliage; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Much-divided Filmy Fern

Much-Divided Filmy Fern

Hymenophyllum multifidum

Delicate and intricate filmy fern with highly divided translucent fronds, forming dense carpets in moist forests.

Lastreopsis Hispida

Hairy Shield Fern

Lastreopsis hispida

Hairy Shield Fern is wind-hardy with notable nectar for wildlife; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Leptopteris Superba

Prince of Wales Feather

Leptopteris superba

Prince of Wales Feather is fast-growing with notable timber value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Microsorum Pustulatum

Kōwaowao

Microsorum pustulatum

Kōwaowao is resilient with notable evergreen foliage; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Doodia Media

Common Rasp Fern

Doodia media

Common Rasp Fern is resilient with notable shelter value; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Cyathea Medullaris

Black Tree Fern

Cyathea medullaris

Black Tree Fern is long-lived with notable nectar for wildlife; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Rārahu (Pteridium esculentum)

Rārahu

Pteridium esculentum

A vigorous, colonising fern of open sites and disturbed ground across New Zealand. Useful as a pioneer cover but can spread aggressively without management.

Whēkī

Whēkī

Dicksonia squarrosa

Whēkī is a magnificent native tree fern with fibrous trunk; well suited to New Zealand plantings.

Autumn Orchid

Autumn Orchid

Earina autumnalis

The Autumn Orchid is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid known for its fragrant white flowers and graceful appearance.

Spring Orchid

Spring Orchid

Earina mucronata

The Spring Orchid is a native New Zealand epiphytic orchid celebrated for its fragrant, delicate spring blooms.

Whisk Fern

Whisk Fern

Psilotum nudum

Primitive rootless native plant with architectural whip-like branches and yellow spore capsules.

Greenhood Orchid

Greenhood Orchid

Pterostylis banksii

Pterostylis banksii , the Greenhood Orchid, is a terrestrial orchid from New Zealand, known for its unique, hooded flower.

Trowel-leaved Greenhood

Trowel-Leaved Greenhood

Pterostylis trullifolia

Pterostylis trullifolia , the Trowel-leaved Greenhood, is a small terrestrial orchid native to New Zealand, noted for its unique flower shape.