Scientific Name:
Eleutherococcus sieboldianus
Pronunciation:
el-ew-ther-oh-KOK-us see-bold-ee-AH-nus
Common Name:
five-fingered aralia, five-leaf aralia
Family Name:
Araliaceae
Plant Type:
Shrub - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Leaves alternate, palmately compound (reminiscent of Virginia creeper), middle leaflet oblanceolate, ~6cm long x 2cm wide, a single spiny stipule at most nodes; umbels of small inconspicuous greenish-white flowers in spring; berries dark-red ripening black.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Round
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
2 - 3m
Mature Spread:
2 - 3m
Origin:
S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Mixed shrub border
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Compound
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Shapes:
Oblanceolate, Obovate
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Cuneate
Margins:
Dentate
Inflorescence Type:
Umbel
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Inferior
Colour (petals):
Not showy, White, Green
Flower Time at Peak:
May, Jun
Fruit Type:
Berry (true)
Fruit Colour:
Dark-red, Black
Fruiting Time:
Jul, Aug
Additional Info:
Showy, Persistent, On female plants only if pollinated from a male plant in the vicinity; botanically a false berry due to the inferior ovary (calyx opposite the pedicel like in pomes and the floral tube forms a thin layer of accessory tissue over the exocarp)
Bark Morphology:
Lightly fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Brown
Organ Modifications:
Stipule (pointy spines), Root suckering
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant)
