The wispy, fine-textured fronds of this medium-sized fern give it a translucent quality and also provide a clue to its identity. Rather than the pyramidal shape we tend to associate with fern fronds, this species produces blades (the leafy part of the frond) that taper at both ends. As the mnemonic goes, "New Yorkers burn the candle at both ends." New York fern thrives in light or medium shade, and several sources note that it does well in sites where the sun penetrates the tree canopy. It's a facultative wetland indicator, which means it's found both in and out of wetlands, and it has a preference for slightly acidic, moist soils ranging from loamy to sandy. This hardy grower is able to survive and outcompete other species in soils with a pH below 4, and it produces phenols that can inhibit black cherry seedlings.
 
New York fern is one of the best ferns for filling in the spaces that spring ephemerals leave behind after going dormant. In spring, the fronds emerge singly or in small clusters from creeping rootstocks, rapidly multiplying and forming dense colonies in shady woodlands. The lush, green carpet doubles as a sheltering habitat for toads and other wildlife. 
 
Native habitats include moist or mesic woodlands, moist sandy woodlands, upland rocky woodlands, dry edges of swamps, low areas along streams in wooded areas, shaded seeps and springs along hillsides and ravines, and swamps. Mass in woodlands or use in borders, shade or cottage gardens, naturalized areas, or along water features.
 
Plant Characteristics:
Typically grows 12-18" and sometimes reaches 24".
 
Grows in dappled light to medium shade. Tolerates full shade with less spread. 
 
Prefers average or moist, humusy, sandy, or rocky soils. Tolerant of boggy conditions. Tolerates occasionally dry conditions, but will spread less.
 
Leaves are 8-25" long, 4" wide, greenish-yellow, and deciduous with about 20 pinnae (leaflets) that are twice divided. Margins are finely scalloped. The undersides of the leaflets are moderately hairy. Small sporangia (spore-bearing structures) are located along the lobes of the leaf undersides. The spores are released June-September and dispersed by the wind. 
 
Root system has scaly, trailing, brown-black rhizomes.
 
Wildlife Value:
Several caterpillars reportedly feed on this fern: pink-shaded fern moth, closebanded yellowhorn moth, and American angle shades. Provides excellent cover for wildlife. Birds use the plant parts to construct nests. Deer resistant.
 
Resources:
Adirondacks Forever Wild
: https://wildadirondacks.org/adirondack-ferns-new-york-fern-thelypteris-noveboracensis.html
 
Field Biology in Southeastern Ohio:
 https://fieldbioinohio.blogspot.com/2010/11/few-ferns.html
 
Illinois Wildflowers:
 https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/grasses/plants/ny_fern.htm
 
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
: https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=THNO
 
North Carolina Extension
: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/thelypteris-noveboracensis/