Flora of the Southeastern United States

1 Plant a woody vine; leaves simple; [subfamily Aralioideae; tribe Schefflereae]

1 Plant an herb, shrub, or tree (if a partially scandent shrub, then the stems also with conspicuous recurved prickles as in Eleutherococcus trifoliatus); leaves simple or compound.

  2 Leaves simple, peltate or cordate, roundish (if lobed, with 3-5 rounded lobes), 0.3-10 cm wide; rhizomatous, creeping herbs; [subfamily Hydrocotyloideae]

  2 Leaves either compound OR simple and palmately lobed and > 10 cm wide (the lobes 5-15 per leaf); herbs, shrubs, or trees.

    3 Leaves simple, palmately-lobed; [subfamily Aralioideae; tribe Schefflereae].

      4 Leaves 5-7-lobed (the lobes not themselves sublobed); tree, the branches armed with prickles

      4 Leaves 7-15-lobed (the lobes themselves either sublobed or not); robust herb to shrub, the branches unarmed.

        5 Leaves 7-9-lobed (the lobes not sublobed); ovary 5- or 10-carpellate; leaf blades glabrous beneath at maturity

        5 Leaves 9-15-lobed (some of the lobes sublobed); ovary 2-carpellate; leaf blades densely pubescent beneath at maturity

    3 Leaves compound.

          6 Leaves 2-3× compound, at least the final order of division pinnate; leaves either 1 from a subterranean stem or 2-many, alternate on an aboveground stem; inflorescence compound, consisting of (2-) 3-many umbels, either on a separate peduncle from the rhizome or in a terminal panicle or raceme of umbels; fruit purple or black; [subfamily Aralioideae; tribe Aralieae]

          6 Leaves 1× palmately compound, leaflets 3-7; leaves 3-5 in a whorl at the summit of the stem (Panax) or many, clustered on spur shoots (Eleutherococcus); inflorescence of a single, simple umbel borne terminally on the stem; fruit red to yellow (Panax), purple or black (Eleutherococcus) or orange (Heptapleurum).

             7 Plant non-native shrubs or trees (sometimes partially epiphytic or scandent); with or without stem prickles; fruit black, dark purple, or orange; [subfamily Aralioideae; tribe Schefflereae].

               8 Plant a shrub (to 7 m tall), with prominent stem prickles; fruit black or dark purple when ripened; leaves either trifoliate (E. trifoliatus) or palmately compound and 5-foliolate (predominantly so in E. sieboldianus)

             7 Plant native herbs, lacking prickles; fruit red or yellowish-green; [subfamily Aralioideae; tribe Aralieae].

                 9 Leaflets 3 (-5), sessile or subsessile, the petiolules 0-3 mm long; larger leaflets 4-8 cm long, 0.5-2.5 cm wide, averaging about 2.5× as long as wide, the apex obtuse to acute; fruit yellow-green when ripe, longitudinally winged and ribbed in ×-section; petals white (rarely tinged with pink); inflorescence nodding in bud; underground storage organ a spherical tuber

                 9 Leaflets (3-) 5, petiolulate, the petiolules (7-) 10-25 mm long; larger leaflets 6-15 cm long, 3.5-7 cm wide, averaging about 1.8× as long as wide, the apex acuminate; fruit bright red when ripe, smoothly elliptical in ×-section; petals light green; inflorescence erect in bud; underground storage organ an elongate root, this vertical or horizontal, and sometimes branched

1 Leaves palmately-pedately 5-foliolate (the lateral 2 leaflets on each side borne on a common Y-shaped stalk).

  2 Leaflets entire; sap milky

  2 Leaflets toothed; sap clear

1 Leaves palmately compound (all the leaflets attached at a single point).

    3 Leaves > 6 dm wide

    3 Leaves < 3 dm wide.

      4 Leaflets with entire margins; [non-natives].

        5 Plants deciduous woody climbers (but not twining, or specialized climbing structures); leaflets usually 5 per leaf (occasionally 3 or 7); flowers maroon-colored, lacking petals but with 3 prominent sepals, the inflorescences axillary

      4 Leaflets with serrate margins; [natives and non-natives].

          6 Stems armed with prickles scattered in the internodes

          6 Stems unarmed or with paired nodal spines.

             7 Stems often with paired nodal spines; leaves evergreen, glossy; inflorescence an umbel; fruit a drupe, dark purple to back at maturity

             7 Stems unarmed; leaves deciduous, dull or moderately glossy; Inflorescence a panicle (or if a corymb-like cyme, then the leaflets also deeply lobed, as in Ampelopsis aconitifolia); fruit a berry, variously colored

               8 Inflorescence a corymb-like cyme; styles elongate and cylindric; leaflets deeply lobed; tendrils 2-branched, never with terminal adhesive discs; pith between nodes of older stems becoming chambered; berries sometimes with dark spots

               8 Inflorescence a panicle; styles short, conic-shaped; leaflets not deeply lobed; tendrils 3-12-branched, with adhesive discs (these reduced or lanceolate in shape in P. inserta); pith between nodes of older stems not becoming chambered (continuous); berries never spotted