A deciduous tree of slender habit, 20 to 25 ft high, or sometimes a bush 5 to 12 ft high. Leaves 12 to 20 in. long, with thirteen to seventeen leaflets, which are broadly ovate, entire, 11⁄2 to 21⁄2 in. long, largest towards the apex of the leaf, very downy on both sides. Flowers in slender, downy, long-stalked panicles, inconspicuous. Fruit a large, yellowish, prickly drupe, which is not fleshy and sheds its outer coat when ripe.
Native of Japan, where it is common throughout the country, of the S. Kuriles, Korea, E. and Central China; introduced to the USA from Japan by Prof. Sargent, and thence to Kew a few years later; reintroduced by Wilson from Japan in 1914 and from Korea in 1918. Although often a tree in the wild, it is usually seen in gardens as a sparsely branched, slow-growing shrub 5 to 8 ft high. Although the species is said to be dioecious, this form produces large clusters of fruits, most of which are fertile. They may of course be the result of apomixis. On plants grown in a sunny place the leaves colour brilliant orange or scarlet in the autumn. Although perhaps less venomous than R. radicans and its immediate allies, this species belongs to the same group and should be handled with caution.
