PlantFiles: Asparagus Fern, Plumosa Fern
Asparagus setaceus

It may be a horrible idea for growing outdoors, but this plant makes for an awesome house plant if you don't have any pets. I have yet to see any thorns on my plant like others have mentioned however, or at least not any that i can feel. I do enjoy its feathery appearance every time i walk into the room.

I have to echo the negative sentiment from the other posters. Invasive is an understatement.

I am in Los Angeles and I have to tell you that once this plant gets established outdoors you are in big trouble. It is simply not possible to kill, period. It spreads from one area to another. You cant pull it out, because the stem breaks before the root can be pulled. It totally entangles in my fruit trees, and constantly searches for a way up. Once up in the tree its a huge amount of work to remove. Thorny and nasty, but you will have to use your bare hands since its too thin to pull with gloves. Since I cant get it out of the ground I constantly have to cut the searching shoots.

Then, to make matters worse some areas will die and become a dusty brown mess (but dont worry, the thorns will be there waiting) which looks very ugly.

YUCK!

Very nice fern, though its not related to asparagus ferns. Fills out a fence or lattuce nicely. Nice dark green foliage will enhance any home or garden area quickly, and its great for flower arrangements. You will love this one to add to your fern collection. I have not found it to be invasive, though the thorns are annoying, but its still a very loveable plant.

I highly recommend this plant to all gardeners/collectors.

This is another of my 'tag alongs' that moved with me from Jupiter, Florida to Huntsville, Alabama.

I did not expect this plant to survive but placed it in the ground on the NW side of my house, protected from the harsh wind. Mulched heavily and let it be. Autumn saw it die back to the ground. This past Winter we had a low of 9 degrees and several light snowfalls .

It emerged this Spring and is doing seemingly as well as it did in FL...perhaps better because now it has the advantage of a prepped planting bed instead of silty soil.
Has not taken over, but where I have it situated, it could be allowed to travel between others and not be offensive...we'll see what it does next year.

This stuff was growing Along a chain link fence and some oak trees in my back yard when I moved in. Looks Pretty so it doesn't bother me.

I hate this plant. It is so invasive. As soon as I cut it off at ground level, new shoots are coming up somewhere else. It has taken over and has grown into the trees. I cut off the growths, and all the vines that were wrapped in the trees died. But I cannot even begin to try to get them out of the tree because all the tiny dead ferns fall all over me and they are itchy and abrasive. If anyone knows how to kill it, I would appreciate the info.

I live in Southern California and have found this plant to be extremely invasive. I've been trying to rid myself of it for several years and it still pops up without fail.

Not only is this plant very ugly, poisonous to cats and dogs, and has stinging thorns, but it WILL strangle and kill anything you put near it if left to its own devices. It is very hard to remove due to the way it wraps itself around shrubs, fencing, anything within the entire radius of your yard.

Please do not put this plant in the ground, or even outside. It spreads through both roots and seeds. I've seen it around and it has obviously been unwanted but unbeatable elsewhere.

This plant is growing in a mostly shady location on the north side of a wooden fence in my backyard. It survives year round and is a lovely background to a birdbath. If it gets too unruly, I chop it back and it rebounds. It has sharp thorns, so you have to wear good gloves when working with it. It is pretty in boquets. I've read it is toxic to cats, but I believe it is ok for birds. My cousin used to let her cockatiel forage on it in S. Calif. where it also grew well outdoors.

I love ferns. They are so delicate and soft looking, however, I would have to agree with the downside of the thorns. I just bought one today and absolutely love it. It fits great in my room.

My Plumosa Fern, which I have had for 10 years, did not survive this summer in Arizona, Zone 10.

This unique plant is one of my favorites. It's very interesting and mystical looking. I have always gown them outside in containers. My most recent was at least 10' tall wrapped around a invisible trelis, (fishing line) which was attached to an upstairs balcony.

Until today, I never new the name of my plant. Thank you to Onalee for all her help in obtaining the name.

mine is planted inground, full shade. Has been a moderate grower. I love to snip pieces of it and stick it in my flower arrangements. Hope I don't have to come back in the future and change its rating to negative due to invasiveness.

5/21/08 This fern was becoming kind of a tangled mess, but last year's excessive rains killed it so it never became a problem. Being that it is thorny, it could be a painful task to keep under ck. If I see another one, I will get it but grow it in a pot. However, I won't go out of my way looking for this fern.

I have been thinking for years that this is a maidenhair fern, and I am so glad to be corrected! The other asparagus ferns I have do not look like this one. This one has come back from some serious trauma, with some loving care, and a self watering pot. It really started to come back after I put it outside. It seems to like fresh air, bright but indirect light, and lots of water!

I love the light ferny look to this asparagus but the thorns ARE nasty. I've stabbed myself frequently. But then most plants have a few drawbacks & it doesn't stop me from using them in the appropriate places. Since I'm borderline zone 7b & 8a, I'm going to try planting one of these outside this summer & see how it does by next spring. I'd like it growing up an old shed to provide a background for other plants in front. If it works, good. If it doesn't, I'll still have one indoors.

Hardy here in Zone 8a (right on the edge of Zone 7), although top dies to ground and new stems late to emerge in spring. Climbs 10-12 feet on porch railing on north side of house. Might do better with some sun. No flowers (nor berries of course) even though probably 8-10 years old. Even after frost turns fronds creamy-tan they hold shape well since they are located under eaves of house.

A favorite plant inside or out and useful foliage for cut flower arrangements. josh z8a

Ok, I had one of these when I was in high school and loved it. I recently found one 20 years later. Yes it took that long for me to find another! I didn't know what it was called back then. The one I have now is again producing these long tentacles with thorns. I do not know what they are called or what I should do with them!
The one I had 20 years ago did the same thing and wrapped it around my grandmothers passion flower. She cut it and trimmed it, but killed it by doing so. I really like this plant as an indoor green. So any advise on the long things would be helpful :)

It grew in 43 yrs that same spot to keep cool and shade. Also it help all the leaves around edge to fern which it compost to grow healthy....

This Fern grows wild in central Florida. It has always sprouted up around our central Florida home for over 50 years. I have never heard it called an Asparagus Fern before. I have an Asparagus Fern and it does not look like this invasive fern, I have had to contend with every year in my yard. A neighbor grows this fern and sells it to local florists for their floral arrangements. She has a large area in her yard where she grows the fern under a shaded arbor. This fern is also attractive when planted in a hanging basket, believe it, or not! The fern is hard to remove, it has very deep roots, and I believe it grows from a tuber bulb that is deep in the ground. One year this fern came up through the wooden floor in my bedroom! This plant is very hardy and can be very attractive in floral arrangements.

It IS INVASIVE in frost free areas. If you must grow it, keep it in a container and remove fruit when it appears.

In Miami, FL. this plant came up from my neighbors seeds. It was so beautiful I encouraged it to grow up across my front screened in porch. Little did I know it was going under the roof of my house until I had to have a new roof! By this time it had spread into my hedges where it grew and grew for years. The only positive result of all this is that people giving parties, wedding receptions, club meetings, etc., always knew where to come for massive amounts of fern for decoration. Learn to live with it, it's never going away.

I used to grow this in England as a much loved house plant. Here in zone 10 I'm much more ambivalent. It self seeds readily and makes a fine background plant, but I find the downward hooks on the stems more vicious for their size than most plants and I've got the scars to prove it.

Great House Plant. Needs to be repotted within 6-8 months. Likes shade and doesn't mind artificial light. Poisonous to Cats.

Invasive and difficult to eradicate in frost-free regions.

Suitable for growing on trellises. The flattish looking leaves are very attractive. The background must be of light colour so as to enhance the beauty of the leaves. The little dark berry-like fruits form on the underside of the leaves after almost inconspicuous flowering. The stem has thorns.