The most common schefflera is the Australian umbrella tree (S. actinophylla, or Brassaia actinophylla), which can grow up to 12 m.
Among the many broad-leaved woody evergreens used as houseplants is Brassaia actinophylla, the umbrella tree, better known as Schefflera.
Schefflera (1,600 species) is the largest genus in the family and includes tropical ornamental and potted plant species such as S. actinophylla (umbrella tree, or octopus plant) and S. elegantissima (false aralia).
An Old World genus with strangling members is Schefflera.
A cultivated dwarf species, called Hawaiian schefflera (B. arboricola), is more compact in habit and has smaller leaves.
Schefflera, also called umbrella tree, any of several tropical evergreen trees or shrubs, in the ginseng family (Araliaceae), that are widely cultivated as indoor foliage plants because of their tolerance to low light conditions.
The genus Schefflera includes the New Zealand seven fingers (S. digitata), which may reach a height of 7.5 m (25 feet), and the Asian S. octophylla, similar in size.
My friend N. realized that there was a towering, flowering Schefflera plant in front of her childhood home in California only after she'd moved to New York and begun coveting one in a Manhattan store, which wanted $500 for it.
If you're keen on growing plants for their beneficial aspects such as the air purifi cation, then research by Nasa shows that some plants are better than others: peace lilies, bamboo palm, Chinese evergreen, English ivy and gerbera daisies are good for cleaning the air, and schefflera, bamboos and hemp can help to solve humidity problems.
Hong, Schefflera octophylla (Lour).
