Learn how to ID, harvest edible fiddleheads this spring

Have you ever eaten a fiddlehead fern before? They’re really a gourmet delight. Among the earliest edible items you can forage from a forest (or better still, from your backyard), fiddleheads have become a popular seasonal ingredient among chefs and those who enjoy eating unique foods. In fact, they’ve become so popular, some small farms are now growing them on a commercial basis.

It’s very important to know what you’re picking, though, because while all ferns make a fiddlehead (which is simply a young, still-coiled fern frond), most of them are not edible. Though there are a handful of edible species, the fiddle heads of the ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) are the most reliable and the easiest to identify. Fiddleheads of other fern species could make you sick. Because of this, you should plant ostrich ferns on purpose, if you want to grow your own fiddleheads, or learn how to properly identify the species if you plan to harvest from the wild.

Fiddleheads of ostrich ferns taste a bit like a mixture of asparagus and spinach, with a touch of broccolini thrown in for good measure. You can pan-fry them, sauté them or toss them into a quiche after steaming them for several minutes. Pickled fiddlehead ferns are a favorite, too. Avoid eating them raw; they could upset your stomach.

Properly identifying ostrich ferns is important before you pick anything in the spring. Fiddleheads of ostrich ferns emerge from mound-like, knobby rhizomes that stick out of the soil. Often there are old, feather-shaped reproductive fronds sticking straight up out of the center of the rhizome.

Another identifying trait is that the stalks of ostrich fern fiddleheads have a U-shaped groove running along their entire length, just like a stalk of celery. This groove is on the top side of the fiddlehead. Other fern species do not have this groove.

Of course even with these identification tips, if you’re foraging for fiddleheads in the wild (with permission of the landowner, of course), I suggest having an expert ID them before you eat. If you’re growing ostrich ferns in your backyard that came in pots that were properly labeled from a quality nursery, the risk is far less.

If you want to grow your own ostrich ferns for spring harvests, choose a site in full shade, though the plants can tolerate some sun in the morning or afternoon. Moist but well draining soil, high in organic matter is best.

You can purchase large ostrich fern plants, but since they’re so fast growing, it’s probably more cost effective to start with small plants. It only takes a few years for them to get established and begin to spread into a nice size colony, just like asparagus. The plants spread via underground rhizomes.

Never dig plants up from the wild. Instead, purchase them from a reputable online nursery (such as northcreeknurseries.com) or a local nursery that labels their plants properly.

Only harvest up to half of the emerging fiddleheads from any single plant. And harvest them when they’re about 3 or 4 inches tall. Once the frond begins to uncoil, the flavor will not be the same.

To harvest, use a pair of sharp scissors to snip the fiddlehead from the rhizome. Though it depends on the weather conditions, fiddleheads are usually ready for harvest sometime in April here in Pennsylvania. Fiddleheads are just another reason to look forward to spring.