Fatsia
Encyclopedia
Fatsia is a small genus
of three species of evergreen
shrub
s native to southern Japan
and Taiwan
. They have stout, sparsely branched stems bearing spirally-arranged, large leathery, palmately lobed leaves
20-50 cm in width, on a petiole up to 50 cm long, and small creamy-white flower
s in dense terminal compound umbel
s in late autumn or early winter, followed by small black fruit
.
Fatsia japonica, known as Fatsi or Japanese Aralia (also occasionally as glossy-leaved paper plant, false castor oil plant, fig-leaf palm), is a shrub growing to 3-6 m tall. The leaves have 7-9 broad lobes, divided to half or two-thirds of the way to the base of the leaf; the lobes are edged with coarse, blunt teeth. It is native to southern Japan. The name "Fatsi" is older Japanese, meaning 'eight' (in present-day Japanese hachi), referring to the eight lobes. The name "Japanese Aralia" is due to the genus formerly being classified within a broader interpretation of the related genus Aralia
in the past (synonyms include Aralia japonica and Aralia sieboldii). It is a popular garden
shrub in areas where winters do not fall below about -15°C.
Fatsia oligocarpella, from the Bonin Islands, differs in the lobes on the leaves being less coarsely toothed, but is otherwise very similar. It is naturalised in Hawaii
.
Fatsia polycarpa is native to Taiwan
. The leaves have 9-13 deep, narrow lobes, divided nearly to the base of the leaf. Some authors treat it in a separate genus, as Diplofatsia polycarpa.
A sterile hybrid between Fatsia japonica and Hedera hibernica
, named × Fatshedera lizei
, has been produced in cultivation in western Europe
in both plain green and variegated forms.
Some species formerly included in Fatsia are now classified in other genera. Fatsia papyrifera is now Tetrapanax papyrifer
and Fatsia horrida is now Oplopanax horridus.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of three species of evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s native to southern Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. They have stout, sparsely branched stems bearing spirally-arranged, large leathery, palmately lobed leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
20-50 cm in width, on a petiole up to 50 cm long, and small creamy-white flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s in dense terminal compound umbel
Umbel
An umbel is an inflorescence which consists of a number of short flower stalks which are equal in length and spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs....
s in late autumn or early winter, followed by small black fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
.
Fatsia japonica, known as Fatsi or Japanese Aralia (also occasionally as glossy-leaved paper plant, false castor oil plant, fig-leaf palm), is a shrub growing to 3-6 m tall. The leaves have 7-9 broad lobes, divided to half or two-thirds of the way to the base of the leaf; the lobes are edged with coarse, blunt teeth. It is native to southern Japan. The name "Fatsi" is older Japanese, meaning 'eight' (in present-day Japanese hachi), referring to the eight lobes. The name "Japanese Aralia" is due to the genus formerly being classified within a broader interpretation of the related genus Aralia
Aralia
Aralia , or Spikenard, is a genus of the plant family Araliaceae, consisting of 68 accepted species of deciduous or evergreen trees, shrubs, and rhizomatous herbaceous perennials. The genus is native to Asia and the Americas, with most species occurring in mountain woodlands...
in the past (synonyms include Aralia japonica and Aralia sieboldii). It is a popular garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
shrub in areas where winters do not fall below about -15°C.
Fatsia oligocarpella, from the Bonin Islands, differs in the lobes on the leaves being less coarsely toothed, but is otherwise very similar. It is naturalised in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
Fatsia polycarpa is native to Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. The leaves have 9-13 deep, narrow lobes, divided nearly to the base of the leaf. Some authors treat it in a separate genus, as Diplofatsia polycarpa.
A sterile hybrid between Fatsia japonica and Hedera hibernica
Ivy
Ivy, plural ivies is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and across central-southern Asia east to Japan and Taiwan.-Description:On level ground they...
, named × Fatshedera lizei
Fatshedera
×Fatshedera lizei is an inter-generic hybrid of flowering plants, commonly known as tree ivy or aralia ivy. It was created by hybridizing Fatsia japonica 'Moserii' and Hedera helix at the Lizé Frères tree nursery at Nantes in France in 1912...
, has been produced in cultivation in western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
in both plain green and variegated forms.
Some species formerly included in Fatsia are now classified in other genera. Fatsia papyrifera is now Tetrapanax papyrifer
Tetrapanax
Tetrapanax papyriferus is an evergreen shrub in the family Araliaceae, the sole species in the genus Tetrapanax. Its botanical name is unusual in that its specific epithet varies from one source to another, sometimes being rendered as "papyriferum" or "papyrifer"...
and Fatsia horrida is now Oplopanax horridus.
