Aralia elata
Japanese angelica tree, Angelica tree
- Height × spread
- 10m × 10m
- Position
- Full sun
- Hardiness
- Cold to -15C (RHS H5)
- Flowers
- Summer, Autumn
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
This striking, suckering plant can be grown as a shrub or on a single stem as a tree. The leaves are held in huge, doubly pinnate sprays, and look wondrously exotic. They are coloured olive green and hang like great palms. They take on subtle burnished autumn tints which sometimes coincide with big, plumy, white flowers produced in late summer and autumn. These are sometimes enhanced by side panicles to great effect. In winter all the foliage drops away and a view of unappealing pole-like thorny bare shoots is the price you pay for having a beautiful and exotic plant that demands a specimen position.
- Flower colour
- White
- Foliage colour
- Green
- Autumn foliage
- Red-purple
- Stem colour
- Green, Grey
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- No
- Shape
- Fan
- Height
- 10m
- Spread
- 10m
- Height in 10 years
- 3.5m
- Spread in 10 years
- 3m
- Season of interest
- Summer, Autumn
- Flowers in
- Summer, Autumn
- Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Garden style
- Small scale garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun, tolerates part shade, tolerates light shade
- Soil type
- Clay, Loam (normal), Poor soil, Sandy soil
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Moisture retentive soil
- Hardiness
- Cold to -15C (RHS H5)
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Use for
- Architectural, Bee attraction
- Hazards
- Yes, stems are prickly/thorny
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water to keep the soil moist
For best results, this plant needs soil that is always moist. Water deeply and regularly as soon as soil appears dry. Even for established plants in the ground, a dry week can cause problems with some soils. Check plants in pots more often, especially in hot weather. Or install an automatic irrigation system which will do the hard work for you, even when you are away on holiday.
Without regular watering some plants never fully regain their beauty.
Spring - early · Planting
Remove suckers
Remove any suckers that have appeared round the base of the plant. They can often be pulled up, but it may be necessary to use secateurs or loppers to detach them from the parent plant.
Planting & general
Outdoor planting · Planting
Add root growth stimulant to the planting hole
Mycorrhizal fungi helps roots establish quickly, so they absorb water and nutrients more efficiently. It comes as a powder, granule or gel. Add to the planting hole or container, and to the plant's rootball before planting in the hole. For "bareroot" plants use a gel.
Found in
More Aralia
Aralia
Spikenard
Aralia cordata 'Sun King®'
Japanese spikenard
Aralia elata 'Aureovariegata'
Japanese angelica tree, Angelica tree
Aralia elata 'Variegata'
Japanese angelica tree, Angelica tree
Aralia spinosa
Hercule's club, Devil's walking stick, Petty morel