The story of schefflera

How can a schefflera plant be either good or bad?  The answer: when one species is an invasive and one is a premium landscape plant!  Many years ago, the Schefflera actinophylla  also called the schefflera tree or Queensland umbrella-tree, or even octopus tree, was a staple plant both for containers and sometimes even for outdoor landscape planting.  Over the years it was found to be a Category I Invasive plant by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council and is no longer recommended.  Seeds were spread by birds all over and this plant began to show up in the wrong place – the classic definition of a weed.  Small plants set out in the garden by well-meaning homeowners soon became massive, over-powering trees with extensive roots taking over their property.  Enter a different type of schefflera, a dwarf type with deep green leaves – some with beautiful variegation.  This new short schefflera fit the bill as a prized landscape plant – the Arboricola.

The original color of the dwarf schefflera or Schefflera arboricola, was a dark glossy green with palmate leaves forming a rounded evergreen shrub not much bigger than ten feet tall unpruned with occasional colorful orange-yellow fruit in the winter.  A very dense shrub already, bushiness can be enhanced by pinching the tips of stems to force more side-shoots to develop and to keep the plant in bounds.  As such, the Arboricola was ideal for short to medium hedges, espaliers, outdoor containers or even as an indoor plant.  Doing well from full sun to shade sites,  this plant has many good landscaping attributes.  One of the best shrubs for shady conditions, Arboricola likes sandy, well-drained soil and does best on the dry side once established.  Drought and salt-tolerant, Arboricola is hardy in our area and will snap back nicely if damaged by a frost.  

Add one more attribute to this fine shrub – variegation – and you have a real beautiful foliage plant.  Cultivars have been found and propagated with yellow and white splashes of color.  Named cultivars such as ‘Covette’, ‘Gold Capella’, ‘Jacqueline’, ‘Renate’, and ‘Trinette’ were developed with ‘Trinette’ being the most common and popular.   Variegated Arboricola are readily available at almost all garden centers year-round – a real “bread & butter” item.

Dwarf Schefflera are the way to go for colorful foliage and proven landscape success.  For more information on all types of shrubs suitable for our area, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (2015) List of Invasive Plant Species. http://www.fleppc.org/list/2015FLEPPCLIST-LARGEFORMAT-FINAL.pdf.

Schefflera actinophylla. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schefflera_actinophylla.

Culbert, D. (2007) A Houseplant or a Shrub? The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Okeechobee County.

Gilman, E. F. & Watson, D. G. (2014) Schefflera arboricola: Dwarf Schefflera.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Gilman, E. F. & Watson, D. G. (2013) Schefflera actinophylla:. Schefflera. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.