Fern

Fern
Renewable	Yes
Stackable	Yes (64)
Tool
Blast resistance	0
Hardness	0
Luminous	No
Transparent	Yes
Flammable	Yes (60)
Catches fire; from lava	Yes
Map color	JE: ; 7 PLANT; BE: (Grass tint)
Note block instrument	Default (Harp)

Ferns are non-solid plant blocks found only in certain biomes and have the same characteristics as grass.

Obtaining

Breaking

When broken normally, ferns have a 12.5% chance of dropping 1 unit of wheat seeds when destroyed. This is affected by the Fortune enchantment, dropping 1-3, 1-5, or 1-7 wheat seeds respectively with Fortune I, II, and III.

Ferns can be obtained as an item if mined by shears. Large ferns also drop two ferns when broken using shears.

Block	Fern
Hardness	0
Breaking time (secs)
Default	10.05 (JE) 0.05 (BE)
Shears	10.05 (JE) 0.05 (BE)

Legend

incorrect tool, drops nothing
correct tool, drops nothing or something other than the block itself
correct tool, drops the block itself
italicized can be instant mined

Natural generation

Ferns occur naturally only in jungle, taiga, snowy taiga and old growth taiga biomes and their variants, scattered with short grass.

Ferns can additionally be found around some taiga and snowy taiga‌^{[BE only]} village houses.

Generated loot

Item	Structure	Container	Quantity	Chance
Java Edition
Fern	Village	Taiga house chest	1	18.6% { "item": "Fern", "stacksize": 1, "chance": 0.18575629348123335, "structure": "Village", "container": "Taiga house chest" }
Bedrock Edition
Fern	Village	Taiga house chest	1	20.3% { "item": "Fern", "stacksize": 1, "chance": 0.20281509304744794, "structure": "Village", "container": "Taiga house chest" }

Trading

Wandering traders may sell ferns for 1 emerald.

Villager		Probability		Villager wants	Player receives	Trades in stock	Villager experience	Price multiplier
Villager		JE	BE	Villager wants	Player receives	Trades in stock	Villager experience	Price multiplier
Wandering Trader	Ordinary	6%	6%	Emerald	Fern	12	—	—

Mob loot

In Bedrock Edition, wandering traders have a chance of 25% (increased by 1% per level of Looting) to drop 1 fern when killed while showing the item as trade offer, if the player holds an emerald.

Post-generation

In Bedrock Edition, bone meal can be used on a grass block to grow ferns.

Usage

Placement

Ferns can be placed on grass blocks, podzol, mycelium, dirt, coarse dirt, rooted dirt, mud, muddy mangrove roots, moss blocks, pale moss blocks, and farmland.

Ferns can also be placed in flower pots.

Grazing

When a sheep eats a fern, the block is destroyed, and a sheared sheep regrows its wool. Baby sheep graze grass and ferns much more often than adults and mature 1 minute faster when grazing.

Composting

Placing a fern into a composter has a 65% chance of raising the compost level by 1.

Bone meal

Bone meal can be used on a fern to create a large fern.

Color

The coloration of ferns and potted ferns is dependent on the biome they are in. A block always uses the color set to its location, regardless of how it was placed or of its source. This affects the side and top of the block.

In Bedrock Edition, biome colors also appear on maps.^[1]

Item

In Java Edition, fern items use biome color with temperature 0.5, downfall 1.0, and as a result is colored
#7cbd6b. In Bedrock Edition, this color is coded in the item's texture.

Biome colors

These values are generated by the biome dyeing algorithm. See biome colors for more information.

Biome	Color	Block
Biome	Color	Fern	Potted Fern
Badlands	#90814D
Eroded Badlands
Wooded Badlands
Modified Badlands Plateau‌^{[BE only]}
Modified Wooded Badlands Plateau‌^{[BE only]}
Cherry Grove	#B6DB61
Desert	#BFB755
Savanna
Savanna Plateau
Windswept Savanna
Nether Wastes
Soul Sand Valley
Crimson Forest
Warped Forest
Basalt Deltas
Desert Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Desert Lakes‌^{[BE only]}
Badlands Plateau‌^{[BE only]}
Shattered Savanna Plateau‌^{[BE only]}	#82C245
Stony Peaks	#9ABE4B
Jungle	#59C93C
Bamboo Jungle
Jungle Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Modified Jungle‌^{[BE only]}
Bamboo Jungle Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Sparse Jungle	#64C73F
Modified Jungle Edge‌^{[BE only]}	#64C73F
Lush Caves‌^{[BE only]}	#B9B75B
Mushroom Fields	#55C93F
Mushroom Field Shore‌^{[BE only]}	#55C93F
Swamp	#6A7039^{[n 1]}
Mangrove Swamp	#6A7039^{[n 1]}
Mangrove Swamp	#4C763C^{[n 2]}
Swamp Hills‌^{[BE only]}	#4C763C^{[n 2]}
Plains	#91BD59
Sunflower Plains
Beach
Dripstone Caves‌^{[JE only]}
Deep Dark
Sulfur Caves	#ABA64F
Forest	#79C05A
Flower Forest
Wooded Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Tall Birch Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Dark Forest	#507A32
Dark Forest Hills‌^{[BE only]}	#507A32
Pale Garden	#878D76
Birch Forest	#88BB67
Old Growth Birch Forest
Birch Forest Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Dappled Forest	#df6827
Ocean	#8EB971
Deep Ocean
Warm Ocean
Deep Warm Ocean‌^{[BE only]}
Lukewarm Ocean
Deep Lukewarm Ocean
Cold Ocean
Deep Cold Ocean
Deep Frozen Ocean
River
Lush Caves‌^{[JE only]}
The End
Small End Islands‌^{[JE only]}
End Barrens‌^{[JE only]}
End Midlands‌^{[JE only]}
End Highlands‌^{[JE only]}
The Void‌^{[JE only]}
Meadow‌^{[JE only]}	#83BB6D
Meadow‌^{[BE only]}	#86B87F
Old Growth Pine Taiga
Giant Tree Taiga Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Giant Spruce Taiga Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Taiga	#86B783
Old Growth Spruce Taiga
Taiga Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Taiga Mountains‌^{[BE only]}
Dripstone Caves‌^{[BE only]}	#8DB58A
Windswept Hills	#8AB689
Windswept Gravelly Hills
Windswept Forest
Stony Shore
Gravelly Mountains+‌^{[BE only]}
Mountain Edge‌^{[BE only]}
Snowy Beach	#83B593
Snowy Plains	#80B497
Ice Spikes
Ice Caves^{[upcoming: Fourth Drop 2026]}
Snowy Taiga
Frozen Ocean
Frozen River
Grove
Snowy Slopes
Frozen Peaks
Jagged Peaks
Snowy Mountains‌^{[BE only]}
Legacy Frozen Ocean‌^{[BE only]}
Snowy Taiga Hills‌^{[BE only]}
Snowy Taiga Mountains‌^{[BE only]}

↑ Above -0.1 temperature.
↑ Below -0.1 temperature.

[warm2-2] Above -0.1 temperature.

[cold2-3] Below -0.1 temperature.

[1]

[n 1]

[n 2]

`grass` sound type
Sound	Closed captions	Source	Description	Identifier	Translation key	Volume	Pitch	Attenuation distance
	Block broken	Blocks	Once the block has broken	`block.grass.break`	`subtitles.block.generic.break`	1.0	0.8	16
	Block placed^{[until: JE 26.4]}	Blocks	When the block is placed	`block.grass.place`	`subtitles.block.generic.place`	1.0	0.8	16
	Block breaking	Blocks	While the block is in the process of being broken	`block.grass.hit`	`subtitles.block.generic.hit`	0.25	0.5	16
	Something falls on a block	Entity-Dependent	Falling on the block with fall damage	`block.grass.fall`	`subtitles.block.generic.fall`	0.5	0.75	16
	Footsteps	Entity-Dependent	Walking on the block	`block.grass.step`	`subtitles.block.generic.footsteps`	0.15	1.0	16

`grass` sound type
Sound	Closed captions	Source	Description	Identifier	Translation key	Volume	Pitch
	Block broken	Blocks	Once the block has broken	`dig.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.break`	0.7	0.8–1.0
	Block placed	Blocks	When the block is placed	`place.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.place`	0.8	0.8–1.0
	Block breaking	Blocks	While the block is in the process of being broken	`hit.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.hit`	0.3	0.5
	Footsteps	Players	Falling on the block with fall damage	`fall.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.footsteps`	0.4	1.0
	Footsteps	Players	Walking on the block	`step.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.footsteps`	0.3	1.0
	Shovel flattens	Blocks	When a shovel creates a dirt path	`use.grass`	`subtitles.item.shovel.flatten`	1.0	0.8
	Footsteps	Blocks	Jumping from the block	`jump.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.footsteps`	0.11	1.0
	Footsteps	Blocks	Falling on the block without fall damage	`land.grass`	`subtitles.block.generic.footsteps`	0.21	1.0

Java Edition Beta
1.6	Test Build 3	Added ferns.^[2] They generate exclusively in the rainforest biome.
1.6	Test Build 3	The item form, unobtainable by normal means, has no name, uses the grass texture, does not have a tint applied, and places shrubs instead of ferns even if its damage value is 2 as expected.
1.8	Pre-release	Ferns can now be harvested with shears, allowing for their legitimate acquisition.
		The item now appears with the correct sprite in the inventory, and is also tinted with #7cbd6b.
		The fern item (damage=2) now places ferns instead of shrubs.
		Rainforests have been removed, so ferns no longer generate.
	Pre-release 2 ;)	The item is now called "Grass" in the inventory.
Java Edition
1.0.0	Beta 1.9 Prerelease 6	The tint used for ferns as items has changed to #48b518.
		The item is now called "Fern" in the inventory.
		Ferns are now available in the creative inventory.
1.2.1	12w03a	Ferns now generate in jungle biomes.
1.2.1	12w05a	Placing a block while targeting a fern now overwrites the fern, similar to snow. Previously, ferns had to be broken to place blocks in that space.
1.4.2	12w34a	The ability to place ferns in flower pots has been added.
1.4.2	12w38a	The sounds used for grass-type blocks have been changed.
1.4.4	1.4.3	Ferns no longer appear grayscale when held in third person.
1.7.2	13w36a	Ferns now spawn in taiga and cold taiga biomes.
1.7.2	13w36a	A fern can now be bone mealed into a large fern, which drops two fern items when broken with shears, making ferns renewable for the first time.
1.8	14w07a	The texture planes and pixels of ferns are now completely square.
	14w17a	The texture planes and pixels of ferns are now stretched and rectangular again.
	14w25a	Cross models, including ferns, are now subject to directional shading.
	14w31a	Crosses are no longer subject to directional shading.^[3]
1.14	18w43a	The texture of ferns has been changed.
	18w50a	Fern items can now be found in chests in taiga village houses.
	19w03a	Placing a fern into the composter now has a 50% chance of raising the compost level by 1.
	19w05a	Ferns now have a 65% chance of increasing the compost level by 1.
	19w05a	Wandering traders can now sell a fern for 1 emerald.
1.21.5	25w08a	Sheep can now graze on ferns.

Pocket Edition Alpha
v0.8.0	build 1	Added ferns.
v0.8.0	build 5	Bone meal can now be used to instantly grow ferns on grass blocks.
v0.9.0	build 1	Ferns now generate naturally.
		The tint of ferns now changes depending on the biome.
		The fern texture has been brightened.
	build 3	Bone meal can now be applied to ferns to create large ferns.
v0.11.0	build 14	Ferns now have a random height.
v0.12.1	build 1	Ferns can now be snowlogged.
v0.14.0	build 3	The hitbox no longer occupies an entire block.
v0.15.0	build 1	The texture is now 44×44, instead of 16×16. Whether this results in any visible changes in-game is unknown.
Bedrock Edition
1.10.0	beta 1.10.0.3	The texture of ferns has been changed.
1.11.0	beta 1.11.0.1	Ferns can now be used to fill composters.
1.11.0	beta 1.11.0.1	Ferns can now be found in taiga and snowy taiga village house chests.
1.16.0	beta 1.16.0.57	Wandering traders can now sell a fern for 1 emerald.
1.21.50	Preview 1.21.50.20	Ferns are now brighter in the inventory.^[4]
1.21.60	Preview 1.21.60.21	Ferns no longer appear mirrored when viewed from certain angles.^[5]
1.21.60	Preview 1.21.60.23	Ferns generate more frequently in taigas, old growth spruce taigas, old growth pine taigas, and sparse jungles.

Legacy Console Edition
Xbox 360	Xbox One	PS3	PS4	PS Vita	Wii U	Switch
1.66.0016.0	CU1	1.00	1.00	1.00	Patch 1	1.0.1	Added ferns. They generate exclusively in the rainforest biome.
1.66.0016.0							The item form is named "Tall Grass".
TU5							Ferns can now be harvested with shears, allowing for their legitimate acquisition.
TU5							Rainforests have been removed, so ferns no longer generate.
TU7							The item form is now named "Fern".
TU12							Ferns now generate in jungle biomes.
TU12							Ferns can now be directly overwritten by placed blocks, like snow and water can, rather than having to be broken beforehand.
TU14		1.04					The ability to place ferns in flower pots has been added.
			1.90				The texture of ferns has been changed.
			1.91				Wandering traders can now sell a fern for 5 emeralds.

Fern

Obtaining

Breaking

Natural generation

Generated loot

Trading

Mob loot

Post-generation

Usage

Placement

Grazing

Composting

Bone meal

Color

Item

Biome colors

Sounds

Data values

ID

History

Java Edition

Bedrock Edition

Legacy Console Edition

New Nintendo 3DS Edition

Data history

Java Edition

Bedrock Edition

Issues

Trivia

References

External links

More in Flammable blocks

Related mods

Java Edition
1.13	17w47a	The different block states for the `tallgrass` ID have now been split up into their own IDs.
		"Fern" now has a new ID: `fern`.
		Prior to The Flattening, the block's numeral ID was 31, with metadata 2.
1.17	21w19a	`minecraft:fern` has been added to the newly-implemented `#minecraft:mineable/axe` block tag. This, however, has no effect in-game, since the block breaks instantly anyway regardless of tool used or active effects.
1.21.5	25w10a	`minecraft:fern` has been removed from the block tags `#minecraft:mineable/axe` and `#minecraft:sword_efficient`.