Aralia spinosa, Hercules Club or Devil's Walking Stick is one of the more prickly characters of our forests. The twigs, branches, even older trunks and leaves have many spines to ward off unwanted browsing. It isn't a large tree, rarely reaching 15' - 20' in my area. But in late summer, when not much else is flowering, it produces humongous flower heads 12" - 18" wide that will yield equally large amounts of fruits edible to songbirds, fox, racoons, possums and other small mammals. It is also a good source of nectar for pollinators. The thorns make it deer resistant, so if you are looking for something the deer will avoid, this is a plant to consider.

Location: Burke Lake Park, Fairfax County, VA