Schefflera arboricola
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 Schefflera arboricola in cultivation
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| Schefflera arboricola (Hayata) Kanehira |
Schefflera arboricola (syn. Heptapleurum arboricolum) is a flowering plant in the family Araliaceae, native to Taiwan and Hainan. It is an evergreen shrub growing to 3-4 m tall, with weak, often trailing stems scrambling over other vegetation. The leaves are palmately compound, with 7-9 leaflets, the leaflets 9-20 cm long and 4-10 cm broad (though often smaller in cultivation). The flowers are produced in a 20 cm panicle of small umbels, each umbel 7-10 mm diameter with 5-10 flowers.
[edit] Cultivation and uses
It is commonly grown as a houseplant, popular for its tolerance of neglect and poor growing conditions. Numerous cultivars have been selected for variations in leaf colour and pattern, often variegated with creamy-white to yellow edges or centres, and dwarf forms. It is also used for bonsai.
[edit] Care
The plant prefer higher light if possible, but can adapt to a wide variety of light levels. As a tropical plant it likes moisture, but avoid letting the plant sit in water after you water it. It likes to be moist but not wet.
 A bonsai Schefflera arboricola from New England. |
 A variegated cultivar of Schefflera arboricola |
