Oplopanax horridus (Sm.) Miq.

Typical Height

Devil's club (Oplopanax horridus (Sm.) Miq.) generally grows 1 to 1.5 metres (3½ to 5 ft) tall. Some stands growing in rainforest gullies or moist, undisturbed areas can reach 3 to 5 m (10 to 16½ ft) or more in height.

Spine Distribution

Spines grow along the upper and lower surfaces of leaf veins, as well as on the plant's stems.

Leaf Characteristics

Its leaves are arranged spirally on stems; they are simple, palmately lobed with 5–13 lobes, and measure 20 to 40 centimetres (8 to 15½ in) across.

Flower Characteristics

Flowers are produced in dense umbels 10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 in) in diameter; each flower is small, with five greenish-white petals.

Fruit Characteristics

The fruit is a small red drupe 4 to 7 millimetres (⅛ to ¼ in) in diameter.

Overall Plant Appearance

The entire plant is covered with brittle yellow spines that break off easily when the plant is handled or disturbed, and it has been described as having a "primordial" appearance.

Growth Rate and Maturity

Devil's club is slow growing and takes many years to reach seed-bearing maturity, which makes it very sensitive to human impact, as it does not reproduce quickly.

Reproduction Method

It reproduces by forming clonal colonies via rhizomes: what may appear to be multiple separate plants can actually all originate from one original plant, with clones detaching after they become established by growing their own roots.

Habitat Preferences

This species usually grows in moist, dense forest habitats, and is most abundant in old-growth conifer forests of the Pacific Northwest.

Primary Geographical Range

Its range extends from southcentral Alaska south to Oregon, and eastward to western Alberta and Montana.

Disjunct Populations

Disjunct native populations also occur over 1,500 kilometres (930 miles) away in the Lake Superior region: on Isle Royale and Passage Island, Michigan, and on Porphyry Island and Slate Island, Ontario.

Wildlife Diet Use

Bears and other wildlife eat the berries of devil's club.

Human Toxicity and Irritation

The berries are inedible to humans, and touching the spiny plant may cause skin irritation.

Ceremonial Face Paint Use

Traditionally, charcoal from devil's club stalks is still used to make ceremonial and protective face paints. Among the Ditidaht and neighboring Indigenous groups, this charcoal was equally as significant as red ochre as a symbolic link to the spirit world.

Traditional Medicinal Use

Indigenous peoples including the Tlingit and Haida have used the plant as traditional medicine to treat ailments such as adult-onset diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

Cultural Ceremonial Practices

Devil's club is used ceremonially by the Tlingit, Tsimshian, and Haida people who live in Southeast Alaska and coastal British Columbia. Hanging a piece of devil's club over a doorway is said to ward off evil.

Traditional Preparation Methods

The plant is harvested and used in a variety of ways: it is most commonly prepared as an oral tea in traditional settings, but is also made into poultices and ointments. Native Americans also dried and pulverized the bark to use as a deodorant, and used mashed berries to clean hair.

Commercial Marketing as Ginseng Substitute

Because devil's club is related to American ginseng, some people market the plant as an "adaptogen", and it has been harvested for this purpose and sold widely as "Alaskan ginseng".

Chemical Diversity of Related Genera

Despite morphological similarities between devil's club and other araliaceous members including Panax (true ginseng) and Eleutherococcus senticosus (Siberian ginseng), these different genera are chemically diverse.