Scientific Name:
Fatsia japonica
Pronunciation:
FAT-see-uh juh-PON-ih-kuh
Common Name:
fatsia
Family Name:
Araliaceae
Plant Type:
Broadleaf evergreen, Indoor foliage plant
Key ID Features:
Large evergreen shrub 3-5m tall; leaves alternate, orbicular, most 20-40cm wide, leathery, lustrous dark green, and palmately veined, 7-11 lobes with very deep sinuses, margin serrate, base cordate, petioles 10-30cm long; umbels 3-6cm wide, arranged in a panicle-like inflorescence, Nov-Dec.; berries 5-7mm wide, maturing purplish-black in spring (may not form after a cold winter).
Habit:
Spreading, Stiffly upright
Form:
Round, Vase
Texture:
Very coarse
Mature Height:
3 - 5m
Mature Spread:
3 - 4m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 8a: (-12 to -9.5 °C)
Exposure:
Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade, Deep shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Accent plant, Indoor plant, Mixed shrub border, Specimen plant, Winter interest
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Lobed
Arrangement:
Alternate, Spiraled
Texture/Venation:
Leathery, Heavily veined, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green
Colour in Fall:
Dark-green
Shapes:
Oblong, Orbicular
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Cordate, Hastate
Margins:
Cleft (parted), Palmately lobed, Serrulate, Sinuate, Undulate (wavy)
Inflorescence Type:
Umbel, Panicle-like
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Inferior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White
Flower Scent:
None
Flower Time at Peak:
Nov, Dec
Additional Info:
Umbels arranged in a raceme; petals reflexed
Fruit Type:
Berry (true)
Fruit Colour:
Black
Fruiting Time:
Apr, May, Jun
Additional Info:
Showy, 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:
Prominent lenticels
Bark or Stem Colour:
Green, Brown
Propagation:
Seed, Greenwood cuttings, Softwood cuttings, Layering
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
Abiotic disorder, Fungal leaf spot, Heteroptera - true bugs, Mites, Mold, Scale insects, Whitefly or psyllids (Disease resistant, Rabbit resistant)
Specific Pests:
Sooty mold (following psyllids), Shoot die-back due to cold winter
