Popularly known as the 'Umbrella Tree', Schefflera are an all-time favourite house plant in Thailand due to their bright, attractive leaflets, and for their tolerance of indoor temperatures and shade.
In the wild they can grow several metres high, making them excellent as decorative background cover.
The Schefflera genus is extremely varied, composed of everything from trees, shrubs and lianas. Schefflera actinophylla (Umbrella Tree) is native to the Australian rainforests, growing up to 15 metres in height, but is also found in houseplant form all over the world.
The Scheffler genus is named after Jacob Christian Scheffler, a 19th-century German botanist.
