Species · genus Heptapleurum · Araliaceae

Australian Umbrella Tree

Heptapleurum actinophyllum (Endl.) Lowry & G.M.Plunkett

Also known as: Octopus Tree · Umbrella Tree · Australian Cabbagetree · Queensland Umbrella-tree

Growth habit

scrambling tree

Native range

New Guinea, Northern Territory, Queensland

Reference · H. actinophyllum

Cultivars of H. actinophyllum

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under H. actinophyllum yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

A vigorous scrambling tree from the warm forests of New Guinea and tropical Australia, grown indoors as an upright foliage plant with palmately divided leaves. It wants bright indirect light and a chunky, free-draining mix; let the top inch or two of soil dry before watering again, as it resents sitting wet. Tolerant of average household humidity once established.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 14 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

13–27 °C

Soil mix

Well-draining, peat-based potting mix

Propagation

Stem cuttings or air layering

Fertilizing

Balanced liquid feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Fast

Flowering

Does not flower indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Toxic to cats & dogs & humans

Araliaceae commonly contain insoluble calcium oxalate crystals and saponins that irritate the mouth and gut. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (family inference)

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Australian Umbrella Tree yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.