How to Prune Hare's Foot Ferns

Even if it's been a while since you kept a lucky rabbit's foot in your pocket, you know what one looks like: long, flattened and hairy. Some ferns have creeping, fuzzy rhizomes with the same general aspect and go by common names such as "hare's foot," "rabbit's foot" or "squirrel's foot." These include Davallia fejeensis, Polypodium aureum and Davallia bullata. These tropical plants are often grown in hanging baskets to show off the contrast between the bright, lacy leaves called fronds and the fuzzy rhizomes that grow on top of the soil. You can grow them outdoors in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 through 11. They need minimal pruning.


Examine your hare's foot fern closely before you begin snipping. A fern is biologically different from other garden or house plants and that distinction alters what can safely be clipped. The fern's lacy fronds do double duty as leaves and flowers. Lift one gently. Look for rows of little dots on its underside; they are reproductive spores that propagate the plant. Note that although the rhizomes look like roots, they act more like stems, lying on the surface of the soil and rooting into it.


Trim these ferns in late winter before new spring growth begins. Wipe down your clippers with a rag dipped in denatured alcohol. Use the clippers to prune out any dead or diseased fronds. Remove them at the base. Look for dried or damaged frond tips and trim these off as well. Clean up trimmings immediately and dispose of them. If the fronds were diseased or deformed, bag and toss; avoid putting diseased fronds in your compost.


Gently inspect the rhizomes. When a rhizome dies, it dries out. Look for withered, graying rhizomes and remove them. If in doubt, leave the rhizome for another year.