Illustration
Asparagus Fern
Asparagus setaceus
Also called lace fern, plumosa fern, fern asparagus, climbing asparagus fern and common asparagus fern
Asparagus Fern blooms from June through August.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Asparagus Fern
Plant it in part shade. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 9–12. Expect it to reach about 2.5 ft tall and 2.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 3 years (a house reading).
No toxicity note is on file for Asparagus Fern. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant, with what the sources could not settle written down; years to mature size rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one, and is marked so; its common name and alternate names have not been checked yet. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Asparagus Fern
Plant Asparagus Fern in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 9, the middle of its hardy zones 9 to 12, spring means January to March and fall means October or November. Once settled, it blooms from June to August.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 9, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 9 in January. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Asparagus Fern get?
2.5 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult2.5 ftwideSee Asparagus Fern in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Asparagus Fern
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Asparagus Fern about 2.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Asparagus Fern to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Asparagus Fern's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases, pests and toxicity were checked against 7 published sources on September 26, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- NC State ExtensionGardener Plant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases, pests and toxicity
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases and pests
- Plant Addictsheight, spread, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases and toxicity
- Plants For A Futureheight, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color, soil and toxicity
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, spread, sun, soil, pests and toxicity
- gertens.comGertens (Minnesota garden center; its Details text is a NetPS Plant Fi...height, spread, sun and water
- plant-directory.ifas.ufl.eduUF/IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants, Plant Directorypests
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Explore similar plants
You might also like
Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.