羽叶参 yu ye shen

Trees, small, or scandent or climbing shrubs, to 15 m tall, andromonoecious or sometimes hermaphroditic. Leaves 1-pinnately compound; petiole 6-18 cm; petiolules of terminal leaflet 3-10 cm, those of lateral leaflets shorter; leaflets (3-)5, ovate, narrowly ovate, or oblong to elliptic, 6-15 × 2.5-8 cm, both surfaces glabrous or abaxially pubescent on veins, secondary veins 8-10 pairs, conspicuous, base rounded to acute, margin ciliate to serrate, sometimes entire, apex acute to acuminate. Inflorescence a terminal corymb of umbels, glabrous to pilose; primary axis 0.5-3.5 cm; secondary axes 7-13, each 7-17 cm, with a terminal umbel of bisexual flowers and 2-6 lateral, verticillate umbels of male flowers, peduncle 2-4.5 cm; pedicels 5-15 mm, glabrous or pilose. Ovary 5-carpellate; styles united into a column. Fruit ovoid-globose, 4-5.5 mm in diam.; styles persistent. Fl. Jun-Aug, fr. Aug-Oct.

Moist forests, forests in valleys, forest margins, ravines, mountain slopes; 2000-3600 m. SW Sichuan, S Xizang, Yunnan [Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, N Thailand, N Vietnam].

This species is used medicinally.

Material of this species was referred by Wen (Cathaya 13-14: 75-82. 2002) to Aralia leschenaultii, which is the correct name when treated in that genus. Frodin and Govaerts (World Checklist Bibliogr. Araliaceae, 68. 2004 ["2003"]) incorrectly referred to this species as A. fragrans (D. Don) Jebb & J. Wen, which is illegtimate because it is a later homonym. The two varieties recognized here were not retained by Wen (loc. cit.).