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You are here >1Up Info > Wildlife, Animals, and Plants > Plant Species > Shrub > Species: Oplopanax horridus | Devil's Club
 

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BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS

SPECIES: Oplopanax horridus | Devil's Club
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : Devil's club is a native, erect to slightly spreading, deciduous shrub from 3.3 to 10 feet (1-3 m) in height. It is sparsely branched with sharp, dense prickles on stems and prominent leaf veins [24,30,48]. The fruit is a drupe with two to three seeds [23,48]. Cooper and others [11] noted that this species is rhizotomous; other researchers have yet to confirm this. Devil's club is drought intolerant [10]. RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : Phanerophyte REGENERATION PROCESSES : Information on devil's club regeneration is scant. Seedling growth is apparently slow [34]. Devil's club reproduces vegetatively, but the method is uncertain. Vegetative reproduction may be accomplished by rhizomes [11] and/or layering [34]. Stickney [42] tentatively listed it as a root crown sprouter. SITE CHARACTERISTICS : Devil's club is a wet-site indicator [38]. It grows on moderately well-drained to poorly drained, shaded sites. It is commonly found near springs and streams and in drainage, seepage, and wet bottom areas [5,8,27]. It occurs on variable aspects [9], growing in soils that are sandy, loamy, or silty in texture. Devil's club-supporting soils are sometimes skeletal. Soils are derived from quartzite or from fluvial, colluvial, glaciolacustrine, or morainal deposits [11,6,27]. Soil pH is acid. It ranges from 4.5 to 6.0 in the western redcedar/devil's club type of northern Idaho [11], and was measured at 3.8 in the Sitka alder (Alnus viridis spp. sinuata)/devil's club type of southern Alaska [39]. Soil nutrient levels are medium to very rich [24]. Climate varies from maritime, submarine, and continental types [24]. Elevational ranges for devil's club in several locations are as follows: feet meters northwestern Montana 3,900-5,000 1,189-1,524 [8] Oregon 1,300-4,600 396-1,402 [9,25] northern Idaho 1,500-4,900 460-1,495 [11] southeastern Alaska 0-1,700 0- 518 [14,47] SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : Obligate Climax Species Devil's club is moderately shade tolerant [24] and is primarily found in understories of late seral, climax, and old-growth forests. Best growth is attained in climax (mature) forests [6,8]. Average devil's club biomass at widely located sites in western hemlock-western redcedar and Sitka spruce-western hemlock forests of southeastern Alaska was as follows [3]: clearcut sites: 0.00 lb/acre young (30- to 100-year-old): 0.09 lb/acre (0.1 kg/ha) mature (100- to 250-year old): 4.80 lb/acre (5.4 kg/ha) old-growth (250+ years): 2.90 lb/acre (3.3 kg/ha) SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : Devil's club flowers in late spring to midsummer, depending upon location. Plants in southeastern Alaska bloom in June [45], while plants on the Lake Superior islands bloom in mid-July. Fruits ripen approximately 4 weeks after flowering and persist over winter [46]. Leaves are dropped within a few days of the first fall frost. In the Cascade Range of Oregon, leaf abscission occurs in October or November [10].

Related categories for Species: Oplopanax horridus | Devil's Club

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Information Courtesy: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Fire Effects Information System

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