The Ginseng Family

Araliaceae is a broad family that is considered unstable taxonomically, which means that more genetic work needs to be done to confirm the relationships within the family. It tends to be a tropical to sub-tropical family, so we only have a few species in this part of the country. These include the Spikenards, all within the genus Aralia. Another species that may be familiar is the common houseplant (and unfortunate invader in some regions) English Ivy.