This evergreen shrub or tree in the Araliaceae family is often grown as a houseplant in temperate regions. It requires high humidity. Keeping the potting soil moist will benefit this plant. It's showy blooms rarely flower indoors. Its a good specimen plant in tubs for home and commercial office corners, atria, or as a specimen tree in larger interior landscape sites. It is a commonly cultivated outdoor tree in Hawaii, Florida & parts of California. Outdoor plants can be brought in during the winter months. Periodic pruning will help to control its size. Easy to identify by its palmately compound leaves. Its leaflets are stalked, narrow, oblong and irregularly serrated. The leaves on a young plant are green with coppery-green on the underside. They are narrow, toothed leaflets, up to 1/2" wide and 3" long. As the plant matures, the leaves become much larger, up to 3" wide and 12" long. The larger leaves also lose some of the glossiness of its youth. Quick ID Large indoor shrub with palmately compound leaves Leaflets are stalked, narrow, oblong and irregularly serrately lobes Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Watch for mealybugs, aphids, spider mites, thrips and scale.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil drainage
Moist
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
2 - Understory
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Broad; Erect; Open
Foliage
Broadleaf Evergreen
Leaf color
Gold/Yellow; Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf margin
Sinuate
Leaf size
> 6 inches long, 3-6 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Leaves are palmately compound, to 25 x 8 cm. Leaflets are 7-11 cm in terminal rosettes. They are narrow, oblong, coarsely serrately lobed or sinuate, stalked, dark green above and dark brown-green below, with a white midrib.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; Green
Flower value
Showy
Flower detail
It flowers in autumn with clusters of green flowers followed by black fruits. Rarely blooms indoors.
Bloom time
Fall; Winter
Fruit color
Black
Fruit detail
Globose black fruit that rarely appears indoors.
Bark color
Dark Brown; Dark Gray
Bark detail
The bark is dark brown-gray.
Stem color
Green
Stem detail
Stems and petioles dark green mottled white maculate.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Origin
SE. New Caledonia
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Container; Houseplants; Patio
Design feature
Accent; Specimen
Garden tags
#houseplant #evergreen #interiorscape #fantz #non-toxic for cats #non-toxic for horses #non-toxic for dogs #container plant