How To Grow Tree Ferns In The UK
Thursday, 27th March 2025
Tree ferns bring an ancient, prehistoric beauty to gardens, with their towering trunks and lush, spreading fronds. They're surprisingly tough once established, but getting them off to the right start is essential. With a little careful planting, consistent watering, and winter protection, they can thrive for decades. Here's a practical guide to planting, growing, and caring for your Dicksonia antarctica.
1. Start With The Size You Want
Tree ferns grow very slowly - typically around 2.5 to 5cm (1–2 inches) of trunk height per year in UK conditions. Some years, growth may barely be noticeable at all. Because of this slow growth, it's best to buy a tree fern close to the eventual size you want. A small trunk won't become a towering feature in your lifetime, so if you dream of a tall specimen, it's worth investing in a larger one from the start.
2. Choose A Bare Trunk Carefully
When buying a bare trunk tree fern (often sold without soil or roots), look inside the hollow crown for small knuckles - the tightly coiled beginnings of new fronds waiting to unfurl. If you're buying early in the season, try to avoid trunks that already have extended fronds, as they are vulnerable to late frosts once planted out. Due to the warmer conditions in some garden centres or nurseries, fronds of emerge earlier than would naturally occur outdoors.
3. Allow Enough Space For The Fronds
When planting, remember that the fronds will eventually reach at least the same length as the trunk height, if not more.Plant with plenty of space from fences, buildings, and neighbouring plants to allow the canopy to develop fully. Crowded conditions can lead to distorted or stunted frond growth.
4. Choose A Shady, Sheltered Spot
Tree ferns thrive in shady positions, ideally under the cover of other trees or in areas protected from harsh midday sun. While established specimens can tolerate some sun - often in situations where they have naturally grown up through the canopy over decades - shade is generally better, especially while young. A sheltered spot is also important to reduce wind damage and to help protect the fronds and crown from winter frosts.
5. Plant Carefully And Securely
When planting, avoid burying too much of the trunk - after all, you've paid for the height, and you want it on display. Plant deep enough to stabilise the trunk, but no more than necessary - usually around 5–10cm (2–4 inches) of the base. If needed, stake the trunk for its first summer to help it establish. Tree ferns can appear surprisingly stable even before rooting, but once they begin developing new roots into the surrounding soil, they anchor themselves firmly.
6. Best Time To Plant
Tree ferns can technically be planted at any time of year, but if you plant during colder months, existing fronds are likely to die back from frost exposure. In these cases, you'll need to take extra care to protect the crown through winter (more on that below).
7. Watering Tree Ferns
Newly planted tree ferns must be kept well-watered, especially during their first growing season. Focus your watering on the crown - the hollow at the top of the trunk - which should be kept consistently damp, as this is where new growth emerges. Also water the sides of the trunk regularly. The trunk acts like a sponge, soaking up moisture and helping to feed the developing roots. Some people feed tree ferns with a weak liquid fertiliser into the crown in late spring and summer, especially after replanting or during active growth. In dry spells, water at least every 2–3 days, and daily during very hot or windy weather.
8. Care For Fronds Properly
Avoid cutting off fronds that are only partially brown. The fronds act as solar panels for the crown, providing energy even when they're starting to fade. Only remove fronds once they have turned completely brown and dry.
Some gardeners allow old fronds to hang down like a natural "skirt" around the trunk. This can help protect the trunk and conserve moisture, though some prefer a neater look by trimming them away.
9. Protecting Tree Ferns In Winter
Protecting the crown is the single most important part of overwintering a tree fern. The crown - the growing point at the top - is the only part of the tree that produces new growth. If it freezes and dies, the whole tree fern is lost.
In sheltered gardens in milder parts of the UK, simply stuffing the crown with dry leaves or other loose, natural material may be enough. In colder areas or during harsher winters, it's best to wrap the upper part of the trunk with horticultural fleece, and push a ball of fleece firmly into the hollow crown to insulate it. In gardens with very cold winters, mulching around the base can help protect any shallow roots. You may also consider building a cover to shield the crown and fronds from direct frost and snow.
It's difficult to fully protect the fronds on larger specimens, and they may brown off over winter. Don't worry, new fronds will emerge from the protected crown in spring.
10. Growing Tree Ferns In Pots
Tree ferns can be successfully grown in large containers if you use a rich, free-draining compost. Watering is even more important in pots, especially during summer, as they dry out faster than those planted in the ground. Keep the crown and trunk well-watered, and consider moving container-grown ferns to a sheltered spot or unheated greenhouse in winter for added protection.
11. Moving A Tree Fern
Tree ferns are surprisingly tough when it comes to being moved.
If you need to relocate a tree fern, dig a wide circle around the trunk to capture as many roots as possible, and lift the trunk carefully to avoid snapping the fragile roots. Replant the tree fern promptly at the same depth it was growing before, and water generously, focusing on the crown and trunk, and monitor closely over the next few months. Even if some fronds are lost in the process, the fern will often recover and regrow from the protected crown.
1. Start With The Size You Want
Tree ferns grow very slowly - typically around 2.5 to 5cm (1–2 inches) of trunk height per year in UK conditions. Some years, growth may barely be noticeable at all. Because of this slow growth, it's best to buy a tree fern close to the eventual size you want. A small trunk won't become a towering feature in your lifetime, so if you dream of a tall specimen, it's worth investing in a larger one from the start.
2. Choose A Bare Trunk Carefully
When buying a bare trunk tree fern (often sold without soil or roots), look inside the hollow crown for small knuckles - the tightly coiled beginnings of new fronds waiting to unfurl. If you're buying early in the season, try to avoid trunks that already have extended fronds, as they are vulnerable to late frosts once planted out. Due to the warmer conditions in some garden centres or nurseries, fronds of emerge earlier than would naturally occur outdoors.
3. Allow Enough Space For The Fronds
When planting, remember that the fronds will eventually reach at least the same length as the trunk height, if not more.Plant with plenty of space from fences, buildings, and neighbouring plants to allow the canopy to develop fully. Crowded conditions can lead to distorted or stunted frond growth.
4. Choose A Shady, Sheltered Spot
Tree ferns thrive in shady positions, ideally under the cover of other trees or in areas protected from harsh midday sun. While established specimens can tolerate some sun - often in situations where they have naturally grown up through the canopy over decades - shade is generally better, especially while young. A sheltered spot is also important to reduce wind damage and to help protect the fronds and crown from winter frosts.
5. Plant Carefully And Securely
When planting, avoid burying too much of the trunk - after all, you've paid for the height, and you want it on display. Plant deep enough to stabilise the trunk, but no more than necessary - usually around 5–10cm (2–4 inches) of the base. If needed, stake the trunk for its first summer to help it establish. Tree ferns can appear surprisingly stable even before rooting, but once they begin developing new roots into the surrounding soil, they anchor themselves firmly.
6. Best Time To Plant
Tree ferns can technically be planted at any time of year, but if you plant during colder months, existing fronds are likely to die back from frost exposure. In these cases, you'll need to take extra care to protect the crown through winter (more on that below).
7. Watering Tree Ferns
Newly planted tree ferns must be kept well-watered, especially during their first growing season. Focus your watering on the crown - the hollow at the top of the trunk - which should be kept consistently damp, as this is where new growth emerges. Also water the sides of the trunk regularly. The trunk acts like a sponge, soaking up moisture and helping to feed the developing roots. Some people feed tree ferns with a weak liquid fertiliser into the crown in late spring and summer, especially after replanting or during active growth. In dry spells, water at least every 2–3 days, and daily during very hot or windy weather.
8. Care For Fronds Properly
Avoid cutting off fronds that are only partially brown. The fronds act as solar panels for the crown, providing energy even when they're starting to fade. Only remove fronds once they have turned completely brown and dry.
Some gardeners allow old fronds to hang down like a natural "skirt" around the trunk. This can help protect the trunk and conserve moisture, though some prefer a neater look by trimming them away.
9. Protecting Tree Ferns In Winter
Protecting the crown is the single most important part of overwintering a tree fern. The crown - the growing point at the top - is the only part of the tree that produces new growth. If it freezes and dies, the whole tree fern is lost.
In sheltered gardens in milder parts of the UK, simply stuffing the crown with dry leaves or other loose, natural material may be enough. In colder areas or during harsher winters, it's best to wrap the upper part of the trunk with horticultural fleece, and push a ball of fleece firmly into the hollow crown to insulate it. In gardens with very cold winters, mulching around the base can help protect any shallow roots. You may also consider building a cover to shield the crown and fronds from direct frost and snow.
It's difficult to fully protect the fronds on larger specimens, and they may brown off over winter. Don't worry, new fronds will emerge from the protected crown in spring.
10. Growing Tree Ferns In Pots
Tree ferns can be successfully grown in large containers if you use a rich, free-draining compost. Watering is even more important in pots, especially during summer, as they dry out faster than those planted in the ground. Keep the crown and trunk well-watered, and consider moving container-grown ferns to a sheltered spot or unheated greenhouse in winter for added protection.
11. Moving A Tree Fern
Tree ferns are surprisingly tough when it comes to being moved.
If you need to relocate a tree fern, dig a wide circle around the trunk to capture as many roots as possible, and lift the trunk carefully to avoid snapping the fragile roots. Replant the tree fern promptly at the same depth it was growing before, and water generously, focusing on the crown and trunk, and monitor closely over the next few months. Even if some fronds are lost in the process, the fern will often recover and regrow from the protected crown.