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  • Trochodendron aralioides

Trochodendron aralioides

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Common name: Wheel Tree


Trochodendron aralioides, a slow-growing, broadleaf evergreen tree or large shrub, is native to the mountain forests of Japan, Taiwan, and Korea. It is the sole living species in the genus Trochodendron. A very interesting fact about T. aralioides is that the wood lacks vessels for water conduction and resembles the wood of conifers more than that of most broadleaf trees. It uses specialized xylem cells (tracheids) to transport minerals and water. In its native habitat, T. aralioides grows to twenty metres (sixty feet) or more in height, but in cultivated gardens it tends to grow much smaller. Wheel tree is intolerant of drought and grows best in dappled shade.


T. aralioides flowers are unique. The yellowish-green flowers have no petals or sepals. The flowers bloom from mid to late spring, and each raceme has about ten to twenty flowers. Each flower in the cluster has stamens that stick out like the spokes of a wheel. The leaves of the wheel tree grow in clusters near the tips of the branches in a whorled fashion. They are shiny dark green above and paler on the undersides.


The genus name Trochodendron is derived from the Greek. Trochos means 'wheel' and dendron means 'tree,' alluding to the stamens that spread out like the spokes of a wheel to form the flower. The specific epithet is for its resemblance to plants in the genus Aralia.  T. aralioides was described and illustrated in 1839 by Philipp Franz von Siebold and J. F. Zuccarini in Flora Japonica.


A specimen of Trochodendron aralioides planted in 1977 can be found in Bed 130A near the Fern Dell. There is also a young one in the Japanese Collection. Most of the photos are of the tree in Bed 130A.


Text and most photos by Kumi Sutcliffe

Flower photo by Hughie Jones

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  • Home
  • Updates
    • What's New
    • Garden Stories >
      • Garden Story Index
    • Self-Guided Tours
    • Gardener Walks
    • Curator Updates
    • Guide Training
    • Walks & Talks >
      • Walks and Talks 2025
      • Walks and Talks 2024
      • Walks and Talks 2023
      • Walks and Talks 2022
      • Walks -Talks 2021 & Zoom Tips
    • PDFs of Updates, Tours, & Talks >
      • Self-guided Tours (PDF)
      • Gardener Walks (PDF)
  • Plant IDs
    • ID By Flower Color >
      • Red Flowers
      • Pink Flowers
      • Orange Flowers
      • Yellow Flowers
      • Green Flowers
      • Blue Flowers
      • Purple Flowers
      • White Flowers
    • ID By Type >
      • Annuals
      • Berries-Fruits-Nuts
      • Bulbs, Corms, Rhizomes, Tubers >
        • Bulbs
        • Corms
        • Rhizomes
        • Tubers
      • Ferns
      • Grasses
      • Medicinal Plants
      • Native Plants
      • Perennials >
        • Peonies
        • Salvias
      • Rhododendrons >
        • Rhodendron Erica Notes
      • Shrubs >
        • Calycanthus
        • Hydrangeas >
          • Hydrangea Background
        • Peonies >
          • Peonies-Overview
        • Rhododendrons
        • Roses >
          • Rose Background
      • Trees >
        • Conifers >
          • Cypress
          • Firs
          • Pines
        • Conifer Connect Exhibit
        • Deciduous Trees >
          • Dogwoods
          • Ginkgos
          • Magnolias
          • Witch Hazels
        • Native Trees
        • Tree of the Month
  • In the Garden
    • Map and Collection Lists >
      • Plant Locator
    • Art in the Garden >
      • Symposium & Exhibitions
    • Building and Grounds >
      • Bridges
      • Formal Rose Garden Hardscape and Art
      • Grotto Area & Black Garden
      • Korean Pavilion
      • Maze
    • Gardener Assignments
    • Collections >
      • Ash Collection
      • Camellia Collection
      • Rhododendron Walk
    • Gardens >
      • Gardens A-D >
        • Alma VanDusen Garden
        • Backyard Bird Garden
        • Bentall Garden
        • Black Garden
        • Canadian Heritage Garden >
          • Bees
          • Canadian Heritage Orchard
        • Cascadia Garden
        • Cherry Grove
        • Chilean Garden
      • Gardens E-H >
        • Eastern North America Garden
        • Fern Dell
        • Formal Rose Garden
        • Fragrance Garden
        • Heather Garden
        • Herb Garden
        • Heritage Rose Garden
      • Gardens I-P >
        • Laburnum Walk
        • Livingstone Lake
        • Meconopsis Dell
        • Meditation Garden
        • Mediterranean Garden
        • Ornamental Grasses
        • Perennial Garden
      • Gardens R-Z >
        • Rhododendron Walk
        • Sino-Himayalan Region
        • South African Garden
        • Southern Hemisphere
        • Stone Garden
        • Vegetable Garden
        • Woodland Garden
    • Garden History >
      • History photos
  • Science
    • Animals & Insects >
      • Birds
      • Butterflies and Moths
      • Insect Friends
      • Small Creatures
    • Buds
    • Colour and Vision
    • Dynamic Symmetry - Fibonacci Spirals
    • Flowers
    • Fruit
    • Germination
    • Habitats and Environments
    • Hormones
    • Leaves
    • Life on Earth
    • Light, Energy, and Rainbows
    • Plant Calendars
    • Pollination
    • Pollen
    • Roots
    • Scents
    • Seeds
    • Soil
    • Stems
    • Vascular Plants
    • Web of Interdependence
    • Weeds
  • Bloedel
  • Search
    • Internet links
  • About
    • ERICA, ERICA'S TREE (and a short history of Guiding) - June 14, 2018
  • Contact