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Aralia californica

S. Wats.

California Spikenard

G4Apparently Secure Found in 69 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G4Apparently SecureGlobal Rank
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.161750
Element CodePDARA02010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderApiales
FamilyAraliaceae
GenusAralia
Other Common Names
California spikenard (EN)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Conservation Status
Review Date2001-01-25
Change Date2001-01-31
Edition Date2001-01-25
Edition AuthorsKelly McConnell
Range Extent250-20,000 square km (about 100-8000 square miles)
Rank Reasons
Occurs only in the U.S. in mountainous regions of central and northern California and southern Oregon and only in wetland habitats, such as canyon stream banks and in shaded areas. Aralia californica roots are wild-collected for trade in local herbal markets. It is closely related to other species more widely traded commercially.
Range Extent Comments
Aralia californica grows north from Orange County, California, except in the desert and Great Basin regions (Hickman 1993), into the Coast and Cascade Mountains in Southern Oregon (Peck 1961).
Threat Impact Comments
This species requires seepages, streams, creeks and other wetlands for habitat. Therefore, it is vulnerable to ditching, draining, and other activities that alter hydrology. It is also an important erosion control agent for these fragile habitats (Vance et al. in press).

A related species, Aralia racemosa, is commercially traded in the herbal industry (pers. comm., E. Fletcher, December 2000). Aralia californica is also available in the herbal and nutraceutical markets, to a lesser degree, in the form of tinctures and herbal supplements (Vance et al. in press). Therefore, the market for this species and wild populations should be monitored to ensure long-term viability of native plants.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Moist shade, canyons and stream banks (Hickman 1993). Grows between 1000-3500 feet elevation (Oswald and Ahart 1994).
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN4
ProvinceRankNative
OregonSNRYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
Plant Characteristics
Economic Value (Genus)Yes
Roadless Areas (69)
California (54)
AreaForestAcres
Bear MountainLos Padres National Forest913
Bell QuinbyShasta-Trinity National Forest11,556
BlackKlamath National Forest6,530
Black ButteLos Padres National Forest5,116
Blue Creek Rare ISix Rivers National Forest12,134
Bonanza KingShasta-Trinity National Forest16,402
Bucks LakePlumas National Forest680
Chalk PeakLos Padres National Forest7,472
ChinquapinShasta-Trinity National Forest22,040
Chips CreekLassen National Forest29,089
Chips CreekPlumas National Forest12,940
Cow CreekShasta-Trinity National Forest22,627
Cow CreekSix Rivers National Forest1,271
Cucamonga AAngeles National Forest1,249
East BeegumShasta-Trinity National Forest8,425
East GirardShasta-Trinity National Forest27,894
East YubaTahoe National Forest17,968
Fisher Gulch BShasta-Trinity National Forest4,791
Garcia MountainLos Padres National Forest7,850
GriderKlamath National Forest10,647
Indian CreekKlamath National Forest5,011
JohnsonKlamath National Forest10,652
KangarooKlamath National Forest40,617
KellySix Rivers National Forest5,195
KelseyKlamath National Forest3,237
Kettle Mtn.Shasta-Trinity National Forest4,589
Lake EleanorShasta-Trinity National Forest397
Little French CShasta-Trinity National Forest11,529
Middle ForkPlumas National Forest29,278
Middle YubaTahoe National Forest7,379
Mill CreekLassen National Forest7,587
Monkey CreekSix Rivers National Forest9,017
North Fork American RiverTahoe National Forest38,495
North Fork SmithSix Rivers National Forest37,898
Orleans Mtn.Klamath National Forest49,090
Orleans Mtn. BSix Rivers National Forest17,183
Orleans Mtn. CSix Rivers National Forest15,589
PantherShasta-Trinity National Forest12,016
PattisonShasta-Trinity National Forest29,299
Pilot CreekSix Rivers National Forest9,192
PortugueseKlamath National Forest18,915
RussianKlamath National Forest21,771
SiskiyouKlamath National Forest54,039
Siskiyou BSix Rivers National Forest18,871
Slide CreekSix Rivers National Forest11,458
SnoozerKlamath National Forest23,414
Thomes CreekMendocino National Forest16,616
Tom MartinKlamath National Forest9,031
Ukonom CreekKlamath National Forest4,621
UnderwoodSix Rivers National Forest6,591
Weaver BallyShasta-Trinity National Forest829
West GirardShasta-Trinity National Forest37,516
West YubaTahoe National Forest16,059
West YubaPlumas National Forest6,071
Oregon (15)
AreaForestAcres
Calf - Copeland CreekUmpqua National Forest15,696
Cougar BluffUmpqua National Forest5,574
FairviewUmpqua National Forest7,417
French Pete (a)Willamette National Forest1,668
Gordon MeadowsWillamette National Forest9,463
Hardesty MountainWillamette National Forest3,754
Limpy RockUmpqua National Forest6,782
Mclennon MountainWillamette National Forest8,085
Menagerie (rooster Rock)Willamette National Forest374
Moose LakeWillamette National Forest5,013
Mt. HagenWillamette National Forest6,406
North KalmiopsisSiskiyou National Forests91,560
South KalmiopsisSiskiyou National Forests104,477
Waldo - FujiWillamette National Forest15,273
Williams CreekUmpqua National Forest5,844
References (12)
  1. Bentley, Andrew. Herbalist. Lexington, KY.
  2. Best, C., J.T. Howell, W. Knight, I. Knight, and M. Wells. 1996. A flora of Sonoma County: Manual of the flowering plants and ferns of Sonoma County, California. California Native Plant Society, Sacramento. 347 pp.
  3. Edward J. Fletcher Strategic Sourcing, Inc.
  4. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2024. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 13. Magnoliophyta: Geraniaceae to Apiaceae. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxiv + 566 pp.
  5. Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: Higher plants of California. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA. 1400 pp.
  6. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  7. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  8. Oswald, V.H., and L. Ahart. 1994. Manual of the vascular plants of Butte County, California. California Native Plant Society, Sacramento. 348 pp.
  9. Peck, M.E. 1961. A manual of the higher plants of Oregon. 2nd edition. Binsford & Mort, Portland, Oregon. 936 pp.
  10. Robbins, C. 1999. Medicine from US wildlands: An assessment of native plant species harvested in the United States for medicinal use and trade and evaluation of the conservation and management implications. Traffic North America. Prepared for The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, VA. Available at http://www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal/.
  11. Smith, C.F. 1998. A flora of the Santa Barbara region, California. 2nd edition. Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and Capra Press, Santa Barbara. 391 pp.
  12. Vance, N.C., M. Borsting and D. Pilz. 2001. Special forest products: species information guide for Pacific Northwest. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, General Technical Report PNW-GTR-513. Portland, OR.