One of the largest and most popular ferns in cultivation today
Dark green, pinnate fronds are shaped like ostrich plumes, being much wider at the top and tapering down to a bare stipe
First set of leaves is sterile and has a gracefully arching form
Leaves can reach heights of 6 feet in ideal environments
First set of leaves dies back by early to midsummer and is replaced by a set of fertile, dark green leaves which are about half the height of the sterile ones
Leaves turn a shiny bronze-gold in fall, becoming brown in winter
Ostrich ferns need plenty of space to grow since they are rapid spreaders
They spread by dense underground runners which extend out in all directions, quickly forming colonies
