Difference Between Aralia Spinosa and Aralia Elata

Geography

• Although the angelica tree and devil's walking stick both grow between U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 9, the former is a nonnative species, while the latter hails from North America. Angelica tree is a species of Korea, Japan and eastern sections of Russia. Devil's walking stick has a distribution from Pennsylvania southward to northern Florida, growing west to eastern Texas and central Arkansas.

Size

• In the wild, Aralia elata grows to 40 feet on occasion, but as a cultivated landscaping plant, it tops out at about 18 feet high, with maximum widths around 10 feet. Aralia spinosa can sometimes be as tall as 35 feet, but most are within 10 to 20 feet tall, with widths between 6 and 10 feet.

Features

• Prickles and spines cover the branches and stems of both species, with the two plants featuring compound leaves, hanging flower clusters in July, followed by black fruits. However, the compound leaf stems on Aralia spinosa can be as long as 64 inches, with its numerous leaflets attached. Aralia elata's central stems are still long -- between 24 and 48 inches -- but shorter on average than devil's walking stick. The flower clusters are also shorter on the angelica tree -- 18 inches -- as opposed to the devil's walking stick -- 24 inches.

Cultivars

• No cultivars of Aralia spinosa are available, notes the University of Connecticut Plant Database, but Aralia elata cultivars do exist. These cultivars are costly and rare, however, since grafting them onto rootstock is necessary to create them. Among them are Golden Umbrella, Silver Umbrella and Variegata, all noted for their multicolored foliage.