Aralia spinosa

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Aralia spinosa
Light:Part Shade Full Shade
Moisture:Mesic
Hardiness:5
Soil pH:5.6-8.4
Height:30'
Speed:Slow
Blooms:Late Summer-Early Fall
Open Woods Forest
Native to:
Edible Rating:PFAF Edibility RatingPFAF Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating:PFAF Medicinal RatingPFAF Medicinal Rating
Tea:Yes
Poisonous

Aralia spinosa (common name: hercule's club)

Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 - 5 months of cold stratification. Germination usually takes place within 1 - 4 months at 20°c[1]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse for at least their first winter. Once the plants are 25cm or more tall, they can be planted out into their permanent positions, late spring or early summer being the best time to do this.

Root cuttings 8cm long, December in a cold frame[2][3]. Store the roots upside down in sand and pot up in March/April. High percentage[3].

Division of suckers in late winter[2]. Very easy, the suckers can be planted out direct into their permanent positions if required.

Cultivation: Prefers a good deep loam and a semi-shady position[4]. Requires a sheltered position[4].

A fast-growing but short-lived tree in its native zone[5], this species is of little value in Britain[4]. It is generally a single-stemmed plant, often spreading freely by means of suckers[6][5].

Plants make finer foliage when growing in rich soils but are generally healthier and longer-lived in a comparatively poor soil[2].

The young growth in spring, even on mature plants, is frost-tender and so it is best to grow the plants in a position sheltered from the early morning sun[K].

Range: South-eastern N. America - New York to Florida, east to Texas.

Habitat: Buffs, rich woods and river banks in deep moist soils[7].

Edibility: Young leaves - cooked[8][9]. The leaves usually have a number of slender prickles, they must be gathered before the prickles harden[10] and are then chopped finely and used as a potherb[11].

Medicinal: Analgesic[12][13].

The bark, especially of the roots[14] is the part most commonly used medicinally, though other parts of the plant, including the fruit[14], also possess medicinal properties[15]. The fresh bark is strongly emetic, ophthalmic, purgative and sialagogue[15][12][13][16][17], when dried it is a stimulating alterative and is diaphoretic[14].

A tincture of the berries is used in the treatment of toothache and rheumatism[15][16][17].

A poultice of the roots is applied to boils, skin eruptions, varicose veins, old sores and swellings[16][17].

A cold infusion of the roots is used as drops for sore eyes[17].

Usage: Wood - close-grained, weak, light, soft, brittle[14][18]. Of little economic value[5].

Pollinators: Bees

Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.

Seed Ripens: Mid Fall-Late Fall

Flower Type: Hermaphrodite

Known Hazards: Handling the roots can cause dermatitis in some people[16]. Large amounts of the berries are poisonous[16].

Links

References

  1. ↑ Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan, 1988.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Elias, Thomas. The Complete Trees of North America. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1980.
  6. ↑ Thomas, Graham. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray, 1992.
  7. ↑ Lyndon, Merritt. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co, 1950.
  8. ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
  9. ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
  10. ↑ McPherson, Alan and Sue McPherson. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press, 1977.
  11. ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Sargent, Charles. Manual of the Trees of North America. Dover, 1965.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
  18. ↑ Vines, Robert. Trees of North Texas. University of Texas Press, 1982.


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