Boston fern
Nephrolepis exaltata (L.) Schott
- light
- Part–shade
- water
- Medium
- tall
- 75 cm
- wide
- 1.0 m
Polypodiaceae
Also called Southern sword fern, Fishbone fern, Boston Sword Fern, Niʻaniʻau, Boston swordfern
Formerly Aspidium exaltatum, Hypopeltis exaltata, Nephrodium exaltatum, Polypodium exaltatum
When it flowers
Not known yet in the tropics: too few flowering observations to read a season from.
Read from iNaturalist photographs of it in flower. A month counts at 50% of the best month's flowering share (smoothed over three months) and 10% of its flowering count, from at least 100 flowering observations in the band.
If a child, a pet or anyone may have eaten a plant, contact a doctor or vet straight away, or call the National Poisons Information Centre (AIIMS, New Delhi) on 1800 116 117, free and open 24 hours.
Something wrong with it?About it
- Grows as
- EpiphyteKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Climate
- SubtropicalKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Wild in
- Trop. & Subtrop. AmericaKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Light
- Part shade to shade (under 6 h)Read from NC State Extension, RHS and UF/IFAS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by 2 of 3 sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension part, shade; RHS part; UF/IFAS part, shade
- Height
- 51 cm to 99 cmRead from NC State Extension, RHS and UF/IFAS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by 2 of 3 sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension 2–3 ft; RHS 0.5–1 m; UF/IFAS 0.5–4 ft
- Spread
- 81 cm to 1.2 mRead from NC State Extension and RHS, checked: the middle of what its sources sayHalfway between its 2 sources, which differ. Sources differ: NC State Extension 2–3 ft; RHS 1–1.5 m
- Water
- Average: moist, well drainedRead from NC State Extension, RHS and UF/IFAS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by 2 of 3 sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension high; RHS medium; UF/IFAS medium
- Coldest it survives
- -1.1 °C (USDA zone 10a)Read from NC State Extension, RHS and UF/IFAS, checked: the middle of what its sources sayThe middle of 3 sources, which all differ. Sources differ: NC State Extension -1.1 °C; RHS 10 °C; UF/IFAS -9.4 °C
Not known yet: flowers, heat, hottest it survives.
In other languages (12)
- Spanish
- helecho Boston
- Chinese
- 波士頓腎蕨, 魚骨芒, 高大肾蕨
- Czech
- ledviník ztepilý
- Chinese (China)
- 波斯顿肾蕨
- Portuguese
- Samambaia-Americana, Samambaia-Espada
- Russian
- Нефролепис возвышенный
- Danish
- Nyrebregne
- Afrikaans
- Swaardvaring
- Polish
- nefrolepis wyniosły, nerczyłusk wyniosły
- Thai
- เฟิร์นใบมะขามบอสตัน
- French
- Fougère de Boston
- Hebrew
- שרך בוסטון
Where this comes from
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-24, CC0-1.0 (observation counts)
- Wikidata, read 2026-10-24, CC0-1.0
- Kew's checklist, read 2026-10-24, CC-BY-4.0
- NC State Extension, read 2026-10-28, fact, cited
- RHS, read 2026-10-25, fact, cited
- UF/IFAS, read 2026-10-25, fact, cited
- Wikimedia Commons, read 2026-10-24, CC BY-SA 3.0
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC BY
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC0
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC BY-SA
- 3D model: Nephrolepis exaltata (built for Vanagrha) by Vanagrha, own
A fact “checked by a majority of its sources” was settled by a vote of the pages it was read from, not by a person reading it; one marked “one source” rests on that page alone. Anything else not marked checked has not been checked yet. Where nothing is known, the page says so rather than guess.