Aralia spinosa

Product Info

Devil’s-walking-stick Aralia spinosa
Ginseng Family

Devil’s-walking-stick is aptly named for its densely spine-covered stems and vigorous suckering habit, which allows plants to spread (walk) and form colonies. If you can look past its prickly nature, this shrub has many redeeming qualities. Large, airy clusters of small white flowers appear in late summer and are highly attractive to a wide variety of pollinators. The flowers are followed by dark purple berries that are quickly consumed by birds and other wildlife. The enormous, finely divided leaves are among the largest compound leaves of any woody plant native to North America and develop showy yellow to reddish-purple color in fall. Devil’s-walking-stick thrives in full sun to part shade and adapts to a range of soil conditions, including average, moist, and rocky soils. Due to its large size and spreading habit, this species is not well suited to small gardens. It is best planted where it has room to form a colony, such as along woodland edges, in naturalized areas, or as part of a thicket habitat.

Blooms: White, 4-6 weeks, June-Sept
Leaves: Large, compound, showy
Height: 10-20’  
Space: 6-10’
Soil: Average-Moist-Rocky
Exposure:  Full sun-Part Sun-Part Shade
Fauna: High pollinator value, huge diversity of insects and small animals
Seeds: Dark purple fruit are numerous and favored by birds
Deer Resistance: High
Zone: 4-9
Native Status: NC Native, common across the state
Provenance: OH, seed grown