Stats

Lifespan

Decades

Size

Large

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Subtropical forest

Range

East and Southeast Asia

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Toxins

Status

Uncommon

About

This woody shrub grows in the humid forests of southern China and Japan. Its palm-shaped leaves rotate slowly to track the sun throughout the day.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Apiales

Family

Araliaceae

Genus

Heptapleurum

Species

Heptapleurum heptaphyllum