Family: Araliaceae

Hedera helix
Hedera helix   L.  -  English Ivy

Photo © by Peter Nelson
Taken in Rockport, MA, 1991.

By Steven D. Glenn

Not peer reviewed

Last Modified 01/31/2013

Key to the genera of Araliaceae

(Woody spp. only)

1. Leaves compound...Aralia
1. Leaves simple...2

2. Vine; stems unarmed...Hedera
2. Upright shrub; stems strongly prickly...Opolopanax

List of Araliaceae Genera

References to Araliaceae

  • Ackerfield, J. 2001. Trichome morphology in Hedera (Araliaceae). Edinburgh J. Bot. 58: 259-267.
  • Ackerfield, J.; Wen, J. 2003. Evolution of Hedera helix (the ivy genus, Araliaceae): insights from chloroplast DNA data. Int. J. Plant Sci. 164: 593-602.
  • Anderson, R. C.; Anderson, M. R.; Houseman, G. 2002. Wild American ginseng. Native Plants J. 3: 93-97, 100-105.
  • Barrett, S. C. H. 1982. Breeding systems and flowering phenology of boreal forest herbs. Bot. Soc. Amer., Misc. Publ. 162: 28.
  • Barrett, S. C. H. 1984. Variation in floral sexuality of diclinous Aralia (Araliaceae). Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 71: 278-88. (Also Cornus, Maianthemum, Medeola, & Trientalis)
  • Barrett, S. C. H.; Helenurm, K. 1987. The reproductive biology of boreal forest herbs I. Breeding systems and pollination. Canad. J. Bot. 65: 2036-2046.
  • Barrett, S. C. H.; Helenurm, K. 1981. Floral sex ratios and life history of Aralia nuducaulis (Araliaceae). Evolution 35: 752-762.
  • Barrett, S. C. H.; Thompson, J. D. 1982. Spatial pattern, floral sex ratios and fecundity in dioecious Aralia nudicaulis L. (Araliaceae). Canad. J. Bot. 60: 1662-1670.
  • Bartgis, R. L.; Hutton, E. E. 1988. Additions to the known flora of West Virginia. Castanea 53: 295-8.
  • Bawa, K. S. et.al. 1982. Sexual dimorphism in Aralia nudicaulis L. (Araliaceae). Evolution 36: 371-378.
  • Biggerstaff, M. S.; Beck, C. W. 2007. Effects of English ivy (Hedera helix) on seed bank formation and germination. Amer. Midl. Naturalist 157: 250-257.
  • Biggerstaff, M. S.; Beck, C. W. 2007. Effects of method of English ivy removal and seed addition on regeneration of vegetation in a southeastern piedmont forest. Amer. Midl. Naturalist 158: 206-220.
  • Boileau, F.; Crete, M.; Huot, J. 1994. Food habits of the black bear, Ursus americanus, and habitat use in Gaspesie Park, eastern Quebec. Canad. Field-Naturalist 108: 162-9. (French summary)
  • Briand, C. H. et.al. 1998. Allometry of axis length, diameter, and taper in the devil's walking stick (Aralia spinosa; Araliaceae). Amer. J. Bot. 85: 1201-1206.
  • Briand, C. H. et.al. 1999. Biomechanical properties of the trunk of the devil's walking stick (Aralia spinosa; Araliaceae) during the crown-building phase: implications for tree architecture. Amer. J. Bot. 86: 1677-1682.
  • Briand, C. H.; Soros, C. L. 2001. Spatial variation of prickle abundance on leaves of the devil's walking stick (Aralia spinosa; Araliaceae) during the trunk-builing phase. J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 128: 219-225.
  • Carpenter, S. B.; Smith, N. D. 1981. A comparative study of leaf thickness among southern Appalachian hardwoods. Canad. J. Bot. 59: 1393-6.
  • Choi, H. K.; Wen, J. 2000. A phylogenetic analysis of Panax (Araliaceae): integrating cpDNA restriction site and nuclear rDNA sequence data. Pl. Syst. Evol. 224: 109-120.
  • Cruse-Sanders, J. M.; Hamrick, J. L. 2004. Genetic diversity in harvested and protected populations of wild American ginseng, Panax quinquefolius L. (Araliaceae). Amer. J. Bot. 91: 540-548.
  • Davidar, P.; Morton, E. S. 1986. The relationship between fruit crop sizes and fruit removal rates by birds. Ecology 67: 262-5.
  • Davies, P. A. 1942. Origin and development of prickles of Aralia spinosa. Trans. Kentucky Acad. Sci. 10: 29.
  • Dibello, F. J.; Arthur, S. M.; Krohn, W. B. 1990. Food habits of sympatric coyotes, red foxes, and bobcats in Maine. Canad. Field-Naturalist 104: 403-8.
  • Edwards, J. 1984. Spatial pattern and clone structure of the perennial herb, Aralia nudicaulis L. (Araliaceae). Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 111: 28-33.
  • Erbar, C.; Leins, P. 1988. Flower development studies in Aralia and Hedera (Araliaceae). Flora 180(5-6): 391-406. (In German; English summary)
  • Flanagan, L. B.; Bain, J. F. 1988. The biological flora of Canada 8. Aralia nudicaulis L., wild sasparilla. Canad. Field-Naturalist 102: 45-59.
  • Flanagan, L. B.; Moser, W. 1985. Flowering phenology, floral display and reproductive success in dioecious, Aralia nudicaulis L. (Araliaceae). Oecologia 68: 23-28.
  • Frodin, D. G. 1982. Systematics of Araliaceae and inflorescence morphology. Austral. Syst. Bot. Soc. Newsl. 30: 43-55.
  • Frodin, D. G. 2006. Commentary on proposal (1669) to conserve the name Acanthopanax against Eleutherococcus (Araliaceae). Taxon 55: 217-218.
  • Furedi, M. A.; McGraw, J. B. 2004. White-tailed deer: dispersers or predators of American ginseng seeds? Amer. Midl. Naturalist 152: 268-276.
  • Graham, S. A. 1966. The Araliaceae in the southeastern United States. J. Arnold Arbor. 47: 126-36.
  • Green, A. F. et.al. 2011. Phylogeny and biogeography of ivies (Hedera spp., Araliaceae), a polyploid complex of woody vines. Syst. Bot. 36: 1114-1127.
  • Harms, H. 1896. Zur Kenntnis der Gattungen Aralia und Panax. Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 23: 1-23. (In German)
  • Helenurm, K.; Barrett, S. C. H. 1987. The reproductive biology of boreal forest herbs II. Phenology of flowering and fruiting. Canad. J. Bot. 65: 2047-2056.
  • Holm, T. 1891. Contributions to the knowledge of the germination of some North American plants. Mem. Torrey Bot. Club 2: 57-108.
  • Hussey, J. S. 1974. Some useful plants of early New England. Econ. Bot. 28(3): 311-37.
  • Jacobsen, P. 1954. Chromosome numbers in the genus Hedera L. (Abstr.). Hereditas 40: 252-4.
  • Jotani, Y. 1992. The name of less prickly form of Aralia elata (Miq.) Seem. J. Jap. Bot. 67: 365. (In Japanese)
  • Lamont, E. E.; Fitzgerald, J. M. 2001. Noteworthy plants reported from the Torrey Range- 2000. J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 128: 409-414.
  • Lantz, T. C.; Antos, J. A. 2002. Clonal expansion in the deciduous understory shrub, devil's club (Oplopanax horridus; Araliaceae). Canad. J. Bot. 80: 1052-1062.
  • Lee, C.; Wen, J. 2004. Phylogeny of Panax using chloroplast trnC-trnD intergenic region and the utility of trnC-trnD in interspecific studies of plants. Molec. Phylogenet. Evol. 31: 894-903.
  • Li, T. S. C. 2002. Stratification of American ginseng seeds- problems and solutions. Native Plants J. 3: 109-111.
  • Li, Z. Y.; Zhu, G. 2005. (1669) Proposal to conserve the name Acanthopanax against Eleutherococcus. Taxon 54: 194-195.
  • Lum, C.; Maze, J. 1989. A multivariate analysis of the trichomes of Hedera. Watsonia 17: 409-18.
  • Malloch, D.; Malloch, B. 1981. The mycorrhizal status of boreal plants: species from northeastern Ontario. Canad. J. Bot. 59: 2167-72.
  • McInteer, B. B. 1947. Soil preference of some plants as seen in Kentucky. Castanea 12: 1-8.
  • Meehan, T. 1871. On the flowers of Aralia spinosa L. and Hedera helix L. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 7: 315-6.
  • Metcalfe, C. R.; Chalk, L. 1950. Araliaceae. Anat. Dicot. 2: 725-35.
  • Moore, Gerry; Glenn, Steven D.; Ma, J. 2009. Distribution of the native Aralia spinosa and non-native Aralia elata (Araliaceae) in the northeastern United States. Rhodora 111: 145-154.
  • Oskolski, A. A. 2001. Phylogenetic relationships within Apiales: evidence from wood anatomy. Edinburgh J. Bot. 58: 201-206.
  • Parker, J. 1962. Relationship among cold hardiness, water-soluble protein, anthocyanins and free sugars in Hedera helix L. Pl. Physiol. (Lancaster) 37: 809-13.
  • Philipson, W. R. 1970. Constant and variable features of the Araliaceae. In New research in plant anatomy, Supplement 1. J. Linn. Soc. Bot. 63: 87-100.
  • Plunkett, G. M.; Soltis, D. E.; Soltis, P. S. 1996. Higher level relationships of Apiales (Apiaceae and Araliaceae) based on phylogenetic analysis of rbcL sequences. Amer. J. Bot. 83(4): 499-515.
  • Plunkett, G. M.; Soltis, D. E.; Soltis, P. S. 1997. Clarification of the relationship between Apiaceae and Araliaceae based on matK and rbcL sequence data. Amer. J. Bot. 84: 565-80.
  • Plunkett, G. M.; Wen, J.; Lowry, P. P. 2004. Infrafamilial classifications and characters in Araliaceae: insights from the phylogenetic analysis of nuclear (ITS) and plastid (trnL-trnF) sequence data. Pl. Syst. Evol. 245: 1-39.
  • Robbins, W. J. 1960. Further observations on juvenile and adult Hedera. Amer. J. Bot. 47: 485-91.
  • Russell, A. B. 1997. Poisonous plants of North Carolina.
  • Sargent, C. S. 1893. Aralia. Silva N. Am. 5: 57-62.
  • Sheriff, D. W.; Meidner, H. 1974. Water pathways in leaves of Hedera helix L. and Tradescantia virginiana L. J. Exp. Bot. 25: 1147-56.
  • Smith, A. C. 1944. Araliaceae. N. Amer. Fl. 28B: 3-41. (see also notes in Brittonia 2: 247-261. 1936)
  • Smith, E. B. 1982. Juvenile and adult leaflet phases in Aralia spinosa (Araliaceae). Sida 9(4): 330-2.
  • Sobey, D. G.; Barkhouse, P. 1977. The structure and rate of growth of the rhizomes of some forest herbs and dwarf shrubs of the New Brunswick-Nova Scotia border region. Canad. Field-Naturalist 91: 377-83.
  • Stein, O. L.; Fosket, E. B. 1969. Comparative developmental anatomy of shoots of juvenile and adult Hedera helix. Amer. J. Bot. 56: 546-51.
  • Steponkus, P. L. 1971. Cold acclimation of Hedera helix: evidence for a two phase process. Pl. Physiol. (Lancaster) 47: 175-80.
  • Steponkus, P. L. 1968. Factors affecting cold acclimation of Hedera helix. Morris Arbor. Bull. 19(3): 41-6.
  • Steponkus, P. L.; Lanphear, F. O. 1968. The role of light in cold acclimation of Hedera helix L. var. Thorndale. Pl. Physiol. (Lancaster) 43: 151-6.
  • Stout, D. G. 1976. A study of plant cell water permeability and of the cold acclimation process in ivy bark. Ph.D. Dissertation Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY,
  • Stout, D. G.; Steponkus, P. L.; Cotts, R. M. 1978. Plasmalemma alteration during cold acclimation of Hedera helix bark. Canad. J. Bot. 56(2): 196-205.
  • Sullivan, J. 1992. Aralia spinosa. ()
  • Thaler, G. R.; Plowright, R. C. 1980. The effect of aerial insecticide spraying for spruce budworm control on the fecundity of entomophilous plants in New Brunswick. Canad. J. Bot. 58: 2022-2027.
  • Thomas, L. K. 1998. Topographic alterations, forest structure, and invasion by English ivy (Hedera helix L.) in the Rock Creek floodplain, Washington, D.C.. Natural Areas Journal 18: 164-168.
  • Thomson, J. D. 1988. Effects of variation in inflorescence size and floral rewards on the visitation rates of traplining pollinators of Aralia hispida. Evolutionary Ecology 2: 65-76.
  • Thomson, J. D. et.al. 1982. Behavior of bumble bee pollinators of Aralia hispida Vent. (Araliaceae). Oecologia 54: 326-336.
  • Thomson, J. D. et.al. 1990. Temporal patterns of nectar and pollen production in Aralia hispida: implications for reproductive success. Ecology 70: 1061-1068.
  • Thomson, J. D.; Barrett, S. C. H. 1981. Temporal variation of gender in Aralia spinosa Vent. (Araliaceae). Evolution 35: 1094-107.
  • Thomson, J. D.; Barrett, S. C. H. 1981. Temporal variation of gender in Aralia hispida Vent. (Araliaceae). Evolution 35: 1094-1107.
  • Tseng, C. J.; Hoo, G. 1982. A new classification scheme for the family Araliaceae. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 20(2): 125-30. (In Chinese; English summary)
  • Vezza, M. et.al. 2006. Ivy (Hedera helix L.) flower nectar and nectary ecophysiology. Int. J. Plant Sci. 167: 519-527.
  • Wen, J. 1993. Generic delimitation of Aralia (Aralialceae). Brittonia 45(1): 47-55.
  • Wen, J. 1991. Systematics of Aralia(Araliaceae). Ph.D. Dissertation Ohio State Univ., Columbus, OH324 p.
  • Wen, J. 2001. Evolution of the Aralia-Panax complex (Araliaceae) as inferred from nuclear ribosomal ITS sequences. Edinburgh J. Bot. 58: 243-257.
  • Wen, J. 2011. Systematics and biogeography of Aralia L. (Araliaceae): revision of sections Aralia, Humiles, Nanae, and Sciadodendron. Contr. U. S. Natl. Herb. 57: 1-172. (ISSN 0097-1618)
  • Wen, J. et.al. 2001. The evolution of Araliaceae: a phylogenetic analysis based on ITS sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA. Syst. Bot. 26: 144-167.
  • Wen, J.; Nowicke, J. W. 1999. Pollen ultrastructure of Panax (the ginseng genus, Araliaceae), an eastern Asian and eastern North American disjunct genus. Amer. J. Bot. 86: 1624-1636. (Also <em>Aralia</em>)
  • Wen, J.; Reveal, J. L. 1992. Typification of the Linnaean species of Aralia (Araliaceae). Taxon 41: 69-75.
  • Wen, J.; Shi, S.; Jansen, R. K.; Zimmer, E. A. 1998. Phylogeny and biogeography of Aralia sect. Aralia (Araliaceae). Amer. J. Bot. 85: 866-75.
  • Wen, J.; Zimmer, E. A. 1996. Phylogeny and biogeography of Panax L. (the ginseng genus, Araliaceae): inferences from ITS sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA. Molec. Phylogenet. Evol. 6: 167-177.
  • White, P. S. 1981. The life history and adaptive geometry of Aralia spinosa L.
  • White, P. S. 1984. The architecture of devil's walking stick Aralia spinosa (Araliaceae). J. Arnold Arbor. 65(3): 403-18.
  • White, P. S. 1988. Prickle distribution in Aralia spinosa (Araliaceae). Amer. J. Bot. 75(2): 282-5.
  • Willson, M. F.; Thompson, J. N. 1982. Phenology and ecology of color in bird-dispersed fruits, or why some fruits are red when they are "green". Canad. J. Bot. 60: 701-3.
  • Yamazaki, T. 1994. On a subunarmed form of Aralia elata (Miq.) Seem. J. Jap. Bot. 69: 180-182. (In Japanese)
  • Yi, T. et.al. 2004. Chromosomal evolution in Araliaceae and close relatives. Taxon 53: 987-1005.
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