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Oplopanax horridus (Devilsclub)
Loughmiller, Campbell and Lynn

Oplopanax horridus Miq.

Devilsclub

Araliaceae (Ginseng Family)

USDA Symbol: OPHO

USDA Native Status: Native to U.S.

A sparsely branched, somewhat rangy shrub with giant maplelike leaves and crooked, pithy, canelike stems with long, stiff, yellow thorns. Devil’s Club is a conspicuous understory shrub in boggy places within the Northwest coastal forest, where it makes off-trail travel difficult or impossible. The barbed thorns inflict unpleasant wounds and were long thought to be tipped with poison. Nevertheless, the plant is a beautiful, or at least unusual, component of the forest understory. Its giant leaves are adaptations to the dim light of its environment.

 

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Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Shrub
Flower:
Fruit: Red

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Green , Brown
Bloom Time: Jul

Distribution

USA: AK , ID , MI , MT , OR , WA
Canada: BC , ON , YT
Native Distribution: Alaska south in coastal forests to Oregon, east to both slopes of the Cascade Range, Idaho, Montana, Michigan, and Ontario.
Native Habitat: Wet, swampy places in shady forest.
USDA Native Status: L48(N), AK(N), CAN(N)

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Sun , Part Shade , Shade
Soil Moisture: Moist , Wet

Benefit

Use Wildlife: Bright red, flattened, shiny berries in August and September are a favourite of bears.
Use Other: Native Americans dried and pulverized the bark for use as a deodorant. Certain tribes made a reddish cosmetic paint by mixing burned stems with grease. Believing that Devil’s Club had magical powers, Northwest Coast Indians made charms from its wood and tied bits of bark onto fish hooks to increase the chances of a large catch.
Interesting Foliage: yes

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View propagation protocol from Native Plants Network.

Recommended Species Lists

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Additional resources

USDA: Find Oplopanax horridus in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Oplopanax horridus in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Oplopanax horridus

Metadata

Record Modified: 2007-01-01
Research By: TWC Staff

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