Polystichum polyblepharum 15cm / 1.5L Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Polystichum polyblepharum — 11cm / 0.75L
Japanese Tassel Fern

Polystichum polyblepharum

£7.49 £8.99 SAVE 16%
Hardy in the UKShade-tolerantEvergreenRHS award winner
Pot size

FREE tracked delivery on orders over £60

Complete the set up
Description

Polystichum polyblepharum, the Japanese tassel fern, is one of the most rewarding evergreen ferns you can grow in a UK garden. Its common name comes from the way each new frond unfurls in spring: the croziers arch over and bow their tips, scattering golden-brown scales that catch the light like tassels. The mature fronds settle into a glossy, deep green rosette with a wonderful sheen rarely seen in other hardy ferns, holding their colour right through the coldest months.

This is a plant prized for poise and structure. It forms a tidy, shuttlecock-shaped clump of finely divided, leathery fronds, building slowly into a specimen around 60cm tall and 90cm wide over two to five years. It earns its place at the front of our Hardy Exotics range and holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, a reliable sign of good garden performance.

How and where to grow it

Like most tassel ferns, it is a shade-dweller. Give it a cool, sheltered position in partial or full shade, ideally on a north or east-facing aspect where the midday sun cannot scorch the fronds. It is not fussy about soil type and will grow happily on chalk, clay, loam or sand, provided the ground stays moist but well-drained and reasonably rich in leaf mould. A spring mulch keeps the roots cool and the moisture in.

  • Position: partial to full shade, sheltered from cold drying winds
  • Soil: moist but well-drained, any pH
  • Hardiness: fully hardy across the UK, evergreen down to about -15C
  • Eventual size: roughly 60cm x 90cm

Care could hardly be simpler. There is no pruning to speak of; simply trim away any tired or weather-damaged fronds in late winter, just before the fresh growth emerges. It is equally at home in a shady border, a woodland planting or a large container of loam-based compost, and pairs beautifully with hellebores, hostas and spring bulbs. Among genuinely hardy ferns, few combine evergreen reliability with this much shine.

Every Japanese tassel fern we send out is nursery-grown, well-rooted and carefully selected, ready to establish quickly and reward you for many years.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

Find out more

What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

Best quality plants guaranteed
7 day live arrival guarantee
Delivered to your door with care
Earn 37 points with this plant · 5 points per £1 Join free

How to care for Japanese Tassel Fern

Give me sun with a little shade and I will stand a UK winter outdoors.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
Get to know me

About Japanese Tassel Fern

Polystichum polyblepharum needs partial shade or full shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is hardy to around −15°C and stands a UK winter outdoors.

Good for

Pots & Containers Shade

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

Hardy Exotic (H5): down to around −15°C. Hardy through a cold UK winter.

Hardy (RHS H5), evergreen. Glossy fronds with golden new growth that arches back like a tassel. Read moreShow less

Hardy (RHS H5), evergreen. Glossy fronds with golden new growth that arches back like a tassel.

Position

Partial shadeFull shadeNorth-facingEast-facingSheltered
Partial to full shade; shelter from cold winds. Read moreShow less

Partial to full shade; shelter from cold winds.

Soil

ChalkClayLoamSandMoist but well-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH
Moist, humus-rich, free-draining soil. Read moreShow less

Moist, humus-rich, free-draining soil.

Watering

Keep moist while establishing. Read moreShow less

Keep moist while establishing.

Mature size

Height45–60 cm
Spread60–90 cm

Reaches full size in 2-5 years

Growth habit

Clump-forming

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Evergreen

Pruning

Leave the fronds over winter for structure, then in early spring shear off any tatty or browned fronds before new growth emerges.

Toxicity

No reported toxicity to people or pets.

Native range

Japan, S. Korea, E. China

Family

Dryopteridaceae

Also known as

Polystichum polyblepharum

Genus

Polystichum
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Polystichum polyblepharum hardy enough to survive a UK winter?

Yes. The Japanese tassel fern is fully hardy across the UK, tolerating temperatures down to around -15C. It holds its fronds through winter, giving you evergreen structure when most of the border has died back.

Does it need sun or shade?

This is a shade-lover. It thrives in partial to full shade and dislikes hot, dry, full-sun positions, which can scorch the fronds. A cool, sheltered spot under trees or on a north or east-facing border is ideal.

How big does it get?

It forms a neat, shuttlecock-shaped clump roughly 60cm tall and 90cm across, reaching its full size in about two to five years. The arching fronds spread outward rather than running, so it stays well behaved.

Can I grow it in a pot?

Yes. It does very well in a container of loam-based, free-draining compost kept in shade. Water regularly so the compost never dries out, and it makes a handsome year-round specimen for a shady patio or doorway.

Is it safe around pets and children?

There is no reported toxicity to people or pets for this fern, so it is considered a safe choice for family gardens. As with any plant, discourage pets and small children from chewing the foliage.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 48 hours with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
Why Grow Tropicals

Plants delivered the way they deserve

Packaged with Care

Packaged with Care

Every order is hand-packed in eco-friendly, protective packaging - refined through thousands of deliveries to ensure your plant arrives healthy, hydrated, and looking its best.

Backed by our Live Arrival Guarantee.

Perfect for Gifting

Perfect for Gifting

From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

Delivered fresh, beautiful, and gift-ready.

Sustainability at Heart

Sustainability at Heart

All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

Good for your home - and the planet.

Verified reviews

Rated by real customers

You may also like

We recommend
Polystichum polyblepharum
£7.49 £8.99