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Polyscias scutellaria

Kāpaiē

Large-leaf Panax

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Image:	Wild form and cultivar (L)	65KB
Image:	Leafs and flowers	80KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Large-leaf Panax, Balfour's Aralia [one cultivar]

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Kāpaiē (RR AT AK), Kaope Pā (MK)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Solomons - Vanuatu

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; Land, lowlands

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental Leaf-H

KEY FEATURES: Erect shrub with vertical branches to 6m. LEAVES compound; LEAFLETS large, ~round, to 20x18cm, glossy green, low teeth. FLOWERS erect stalk to 80cm with whorls of branches and branchlets, each with clusters of small unshowy flowers. Cvs. have flowers absent, and leaflets 1-5, ~round, to 15cmØ, round, ±dissected, large spinous teeth; green ('Balfourii'), green and yellow ('Crispata Aurea'), and grey and white ('Variegata').

Enlarged Image of 'Polyscias scutellaria'

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+++	++	+	-??			-		-

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Polyscias scutellaria (N.L.Burman)
SYNONYMS: Polyscias pinnata J.R. & G.Forster; Polyscias balfouriana (hort. ex Andre) Bailey; Nothopanax tricochleatum Miq.; Polyscias tricochleata (Miq.) Fosberg

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); MAGNOLIOPSIDA (=Dicotyledones); ROSIDAE; Apiales; ARALIACEAE

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.657 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.899 Hortus 3rd
p.919 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.142 Tropica
p.3/638 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM05a, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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