BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Aralia spinosa | Devil's Walking Stick 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Devil's walking stick is a spiny, few-branched, flat-topped tree or
shrub 25 to 35 feet (7-10 m) tall.  It grows from extensive rhizomes
[4,24,33,36,37].  The stems tend to remain unbranched until the first
terminal inflorescences are produced at an average age of 3.5 years.
There are abundant prickles on the stems and leaves of first-year ramets
[13,36,37].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte (mesophanerophyte)


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Devil's walking stick perennates by rhizomes, producing ramets.  Leaves
may be killed by frost in winter; severe frost can kill stems back to
ground level [13].  Flowers are pollinated by insects, mostly bees.
Seeds are dispersed by frugivores, and germination is in the spring
following stratification [8,32,33].  Artificial propagation can be
achieved through root cuttings [32].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Devil's walking stick is found in upland and low woods, pocosins, and
savannahs [24].  It prefers rich moist soils and is found at edges of
streams, and in thickets and shrub bays [13,33].  Some of the plant
species associated with Devil's walking stick include black cherry
(Prunus serotina), eastern hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana), tree
sparkleberry (Vaccinium arboreum), red maple (Acer rubrum var trilobum),
American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), common persimmon (Diospyros
virginiana), sassafras (Sassafras albidum), Carolina jessamine
(Gelsemium sempervirens), Bignonia capreolata, St. Andrew's cross
(Ascyrum hypericoides), common sweetleaf (Symplocos tinctoria),
Vaccinium spp., and passionflower (Passiflora lutea) [23].  Associates
on a Texas shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata)/white oak (Quercus alba)
community include Meliz azedarach, hawthorn (Crataegus crus-galli), and
flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) [36].

Devil's walking stick is found in Louisiana in openings in upland
hardwoods, with plant associates including sassafras, American holly
(Ilex opaca), flowering dogwood, sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum),
serviceberry (Amelanchier spp.), common persimmon, Vaccinium spp., grape
(Vitis spp.), eastern hophornbeam, Viburnum spp., and Carolina buckthorn
(Rhamnus caroliniana).  It is also found on gullied land and on moist
bottomlands with plant associates including American sycamore (Platanus
occidentalis) and green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) [28].

Devil's walking stick is found in southern Appalachian forests in
openings from 8,042 square feet to 10,763 square feet (750-1,000 sq m),
with the frequency of occurrence dropping off with larger gaps; it is
not found in undisturbed understory [26].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Obligate Initial Community Species

Devil's walking stick is shade intolerant [31].  In a study of
succession in Illinois oak (Quercus velutina) woodlands , Shotola [27]
reported that a population of Devil's walking stick (documented in 1967)
decreased as a population of sugar maple (Acer saccarum) increased; by
1983, no individuals were found.  The assumption is that the increased
canopy coverage was unfavorable to Devil's walking stick.  Devil's
walking stick is also found in abundance in clearcuts, but not in
adjacent intact pine plantations in Ohio.  The population on this site
increased in the third and fourth years after the clearcut.  There is
concern that the presence of Devil's walking stick on these sites may
delay subsequent establishment of hardwood species [1].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Devil's walking stick flowers in July and August, setting fruit
that ripens from September to October [33].

Related categories for Species: Aralia spinosa | Devil's Walking Stick