Schefflera

? Schefflera
Schefflera arboricola
Plant Info
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Apiales Family: Araliaceae Subfamily: Aralioideae Genus: Schefflera J.R.Forst. & G.Forst.
Selected species
*Schefflera actinophylla Schefflera arboricola Schefflera delavayi Schefflera digitata Schefflera elegantissima Schefflera longifolia Schefflera morototoni Schefflera octostyla Schefflera pubens Schefflera robusta Schefflera rotundifolia Schefflera sciadophyllum Schefflera sphaerocoma Schefflera stellata Schefflera tomentosa Schefflera umbellifera Schefflera urbaniana Schefflera venulosa For the complete list, see List of Schefflera species.
Synonyms
*Actinomorphe (Miq.) Miq. Actinophyllum Ruiz & Pav. Agalma Miq. Astropanax Seem. Bakeria Seem. Brassaia Endl. Cephaloschefflera (Harms) Merr. Crepinella Marchal Didymopanax Decne. & Planch. Dizygotheca N.E.Br. Geopanax Hemsl. Heptapleurum Gaertn. Neocussonia Hutch. Nesopanax Seem. Octotheca R.Vig. Parapanax Miq. Paratropia (Blume) DC. Plerandra A.Gray Scheffleropsis Ridl. Sciadophyllum P.Browne Tupidanthus Hook.f. & Thomson

A variegated cultivar of Schefflera arboricola

Schefflera is a genus in the flowering plant family Araliaceae. The plants are trees, shrubs or lianas growing 1-30 m tall, with woody stems and palmately compound leaves. The Circumscription of the genus has varied greatly. Phylogenetic studies have shown that the widely used broad circumscription as a pantropical genus of over 700 species is polyphyletic, but it remains to be seen how this will affect the classification of the genus.

Several species are grown in pots as houseplants, most commonly Schefflera actinophylla, also known as the Umbrella Tree. Numerous cultivars have been selected for various characters, most popularly for variegated or purple foliage. Schefflera species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidopteran species including Batrachedra arenosella (recorded on S. stellata).

Schefflera wallichiana

Name

The genus is named in honor of Jacob Christian Scheffler, a German botanist who wrote about Asarum.

References

• Frodin, D. G. and R. Govaerts. 2004. World Checklist and Bibliography of Araliaceae. Kew Publishing.
• Plunkett, G. M., P. P. Lowry, D. G. Frodin and J. Wen. 2005. Phylogeny and geography of Schefflera: pervasive polyphyly in the largest genus of Araliaceae. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 92: 202-224.