Гептаплеурум древовидный: уход, свойства и опасность для животных.

Species of flowering plant
Speciesbox
|image = Schefflera arboricola, vrugte, a, Pretoria. jpg
|genus = Heptapleurum
|species = arboricola
|authority = Hayata
|synonyms ref = Its common name is dwarf umbrella tree, as it resembles a smaller version of the umbrella tree, Heptapleurum actinophyllum.

It is an evergreen shrub growing to 8–9 m tall, free standing, or clinging to the trunks of other trees as an epiphyte. The leaves are palmately compound, with 7–9 leaflets, the leaflets 9–20 cm long and 4–10 cm broad (though often smaller in cultivation) with a wedge shaped base, entire margin, and an obtuse or acute apex, sometimes emarginate.

Appearing from midsummer to early autumn, the flowers are produced in a 20 cm panicle of small umbels, each umbel 7–10 mm in diameter with 5–10 flowers. It has also been introduced to the Ryukyu Islands, Hawaii, Florida, Bermuda, and Jamaica.

The plant prefers bright indirect light, but can adapt to a wide variety of light levels. As a tropical plant, it prefers moisture and humidity, but soil should be well drained and allowed to dry out between waterings. Allowing the plant to sit in water can cause root rot.

Under the right conditions, this plant will produce aerial roots that, when they reach the ground, will convert to fully functional roots. They give the plant an unusual and interesting appearance. Three conditions must be maintained for the plant to produce them: a high growth rate, insufficient trunk roots (the plant is root bound or these roots are pruned) and constant, very high humidity.

All parts of the plant contain calcium oxalate crystals, saponins and terpenoids, toxic compounds which are irritants for cats and dogs. They can cause swelling (in some cases leading to breathing difficulties), burning of the mouth, difficulty swallowing, vomiting, diarrhoea, and itching. For humans, the plant is low severity poison and a skin irritant which can cause contact dermatitits.