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Aralia nudicaulis L.

Wild sarsaparilla (en)

Species

Angiosperms > Apiales > Araliaceae > Aralia

Characteristics

Acaulescent perennial herb, the lvs and peduncle arising from a long rhizome; petiole erect, to 5 dm; lvs ternate, each division pinnately 3–5-foliolate; lfls lance-elliptic to obovate, to 15 × 8 cm, acuminate, finely serrate, the lateral ones asymmetric at base; peduncles usually much shorter than the petioles, bearing (2)3(–7) umbels; styles distinct; fr nearly black; 2n=24. Woods; Nf. to D.C., Ind., Neb., and Colo., and in the mts. to Ga. May, June.
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A small plant. It grows about 25 cm high. It has a long creeping rootstock under the ground. The leaves are compound and have 3 divisions with 3-5 oval leaflets with teeth along the edge. Each leaflet is 5-12 cm long. The flowers are white or green and small. There are usually 3 dense clusters on a single leafless stalk. The fruit is a round, purplish-black berry.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support -
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality
Pollination entomogamy
Spread -
Mature width (meter) 0.9 - 1.4
Mature height (meter) 0.4 - 0.5
Root system creeping-root rhizome tap-root
Rooting depth (meter) 0.3
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Moist, shady, rocky woods. Moist or dry woods, thickets, riparian areas, margins of prairies, or bog edges; at elevations from 50-2,700 metres.
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It grows in moist poplar woods and thickets. It suits hardiness zone 3.
Light 2-7
Soil humidity 5-6
Soil texture 1-5
Soil acidity 3-7
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 4-6

Usage

The rootstock is used as an ingredient in root beer. It is also used in a herbal tea. The rootstock is boiled and the water can be sweetened and drunk.
Uses beverage environmental use food forage medicinal tea
Edible fruits leaves roots saps shoots
Therapeutic use Gynecological Aid (fruit), Pediatric Aid (fruit), Pulmonary Aid (fruit), Tonic (fruit), Anticonvulsive (leaf), Blood Medicine (leaf), Stimulant (leaf), Kidney Aid (root), Pediatric Aid (root), Ear Medicine (root), Analgesic (root), Gastrointestinal Aid (root), Blood Medicine (root), Abortifacient (root), Dermatological Aid (root), Hemostat (root), Veterinary Aid (root), Oral Aid (root), Panacea (root), Toothache (root), Tonic (root), Cough Medicine (root), Eye Medicine (root), Tuberculosis Remedy (root), Venereal Aid (root), Antihemorrhagic (root), Pulmonary Aid (root), Burn Dressing (root), Stimulant (root), Cathartic (root), Hunting Medicine (root), Disinfectant (root), Tonic (sap), Blood Medicine (unspecified), Cancer Treatment (unspecified), Cold Remedy (unspecified), Dermatological Aid (unspecified), Misc. Disease Remedy (unspecified), Throat Aid (unspecified), Tonic (unspecified), Alterative (unspecified), Cathartic (unspecified), Cough (unspecified), Depurative (unspecified), Hemoptysis (unspecified), Medicine (unspecified), Narcotic (unspecified), Sudorific (unspecified), Tea (unspecified), Cancer (unspecified), Pectoral (unspecified), Refrigerant (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed.
Mode cuttings seedlings suckers
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -35
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Habit

Aralia nudicaulis habit picture by Eileen T (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Aralia nudicaulis leaf picture by Barber Ryan (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis leaf picture by Joshua Jebin (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis leaf picture by Maxime Durand (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Aralia nudicaulis flower picture by Christi Cottrell (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis flower picture by Brandy Brandy (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis flower picture by Ed Lehming (cc-by-sa)

Fruit

Aralia nudicaulis fruit picture by Maxime Durand (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis fruit picture by Savannah (cc-by-sa)
Aralia nudicaulis fruit picture by Ripley Maddock (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Aralia nudicaulis world distribution map, present in Canada, Colombia, France, Micronesia (Federated States of), Georgia, Malaysia, Nicaragua, and United States of America

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:89729-1
WFO ID wfo-0000258460
COL ID G4VY
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID 762062
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Aralia nudicaulis f. abortiva Aralia nudicaulis f. depauperata Aralia nudicaulis f. prolifera Aralia nudicaulis f. virescens Aralia nudicaulis f. nudicaulis Aralia nudicaulis var. elongata Aralia nudicaulis var. prolifera Aralia nudicaulis
WorldFloraDB 2024