Taiga root bristly

The bristly taiga root, also called Eleutherococcus senticosus, taiga root or Siberian ginseng, is a plant of the ivy family native to Siberia, the Amur region, Sakhalin Island, Japan, North Korea and the northeastern People's Republic of China.

The dried rhizomes and roots, Eleutherococci radix, are used phytotherapeutically.

The taiga root is a deciduous shrub that reaches growth heights of 2 to 7 m. It has only a few branches, which are covered with small spines. The leaves are on long stems and are oval in shape. The bristly taiga root forms umbelliferous inflorescences, with small, hermaphroditic and yellow flowers. The fruits of the shrub are blue to black in colour.

Eleutherococcus senticosus is the parent plant of Eleutherococci radix