Tetrapanax papyrifer Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Tetrapanax papyrifer — 19cm / 3L19cm / 3L
Rice Paper Plant (Chinese Rice-paper Plant)

Tetrapanax papyrifer

£37.99
Protect from hard frostSun-lovingLoved by pollinators
Pot size
19cm / 3L £37.99

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Description

The Tetrapanax papyrifer, better known as the rice paper plant, grows some of the largest leaves of any hardy exotic you can plant in a British garden. Each deeply lobed, palmate leaf can reach the size of a dustbin lid, held on tall stems to give an instant, prehistoric jungle canopy. If you want big, bold, tropical drama fast, this fast-growing architectural giant delivers it in a single season and is a cornerstone of the exotic border.

It is genuinely hardy in much of the UK, rated RHS H3. In milder gardens it can hold its leaves as a semi-evergreen, while in a hard winter the top growth is usually knocked back by frost. That is completely normal for this plant: the roots are far tougher than the foliage and reliably resprout from the base in spring, often throwing up an even better clump. It also spreads by underground suckers, so it slowly forms a thicket, something to plan for and easy to curb with a root barrier if space is tight.

Water generously and feed in spring to fuel the biggest leaves, then ease off over winter. One important note: the fine hairs on new growth can irritate skin, eyes and airways, so wear gloves, long sleeves and eye protection when handling or cutting it back. Pair it with our other hardy exotics for a lush jungle scheme, grow it as a specimen in a large container among your plants for pots, and read our what to expect guide to see how it behaves through the seasons.

Every Tetrapanax papyrifer we supply is nursery-grown, hand-selected for strong, healthy growth, and packed with care to arrive in superb condition ready to plant out or pot up.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

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What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

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How to care for Rice Paper Plant (Chinese Rice-paper Plant)

Plant me in full sun and protect me when hard frost threatens.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
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About Rice Paper Plant (Chinese Rice-paper Plant)

Tetrapanax papyrifer needs full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is half-hardy to around −5°C and needs protection from hard frost.

Good for

Architectural Exotic Borders Pots & Containers

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

RHS H3 · Semi-hardy · down to around −5°C

hardy roots (RHS H3), with top growth that may be frosted and resprout. Mulch the crown in cold gardens.

Position

Full sunPartial shadeSouth-facingWest-facingSheltered

warm, sheltered, full sun to light shade. Shelter from wind keeps those huge leaves looking their best. Perfect for architectural foliage and exotic borders.

Soil

ChalkLoamSandMoist but well-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH

any reasonable, free-draining chalk, loam or sand, enriched with organic matter for maximum leaf size.

Watering

Water generously through the growing season to power those enormous leaves, then ease off in winter. Feed in spring for maximum leaf size. Be aware it spreads by underground suckers and can throw up new stems a little distance from the parent, so plant where a slowly expanding clump is welcome, or curb it with a root barrier. New growth carries fine hairs that can irritate skin, eyes and airways, so wear gloves, long sleeves and eye protection when handling or cutting it back. Read moreShow less

Water generously through the growing season to power those enormous leaves, then ease off in winter. Feed in spring for maximum leaf size. Be aware it spreads by underground suckers and can throw up new stems a little distance from the parent, so plant where a slowly expanding clump is welcome, or curb it with a root barrier. New growth carries fine hairs that can irritate skin, eyes and airways, so wear gloves, long sleeves and eye protection when handling or cutting it back.

Mature size

Height4-8 m
Spread4-8 m (spreads by suckers)

Reaches full size in 2-5 years

Growth habit

Columnar/upright

Flowering

Oct-Nov

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Semi-evergreen

Pruning

Remove dead or damaged leaves as they appear. To keep its size in check you can cut the stems and any suckers back hard in spring, when it will readily reshoot.

Toxicity

The fine hairs on the new growth and undersides of the leaves can irritate the skin, eyes and airways. Wear gloves, long sleeves and eye protection when handling or pruning. Best kept away from areas of close contact.

Native range

China, Taiwan

Family

Araliaceae

Also known as

Tetrapanax papyrifer

Genus

Tetrapanax
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Tetrapanax invasive in the UK?

It is not classed as an invasive weed in the UK and is perfectly legal to grow, but it is vigorous and spreads by underground suckers, so it slowly forms a thicket and can send up new stems a little way from the parent plant. Plant it where a gradually widening clump is welcome, or sink a root barrier around it to keep it in bounds. It is easy to control by pulling or digging out unwanted suckers each spring. It suits a generous exotic border.

Where is the best place to plant Tetrapanax?

Choose a warm, sheltered spot in full sun or light shade, out of strong wind so the huge leaves do not tatter. It is the ideal backbone for a jungle-style architectural foliage planting, giving height and drama behind lower foliage. Give it room to spread, and enrich the soil with organic matter for the biggest possible leaves.

How quickly does Tetrapanax grow?

Very quickly. In good conditions it can put on around a metre of growth in a single season and reaches its full 4 to 8 m surprisingly fast, though in the UK it is usually kept lower because the top is cut back each winter and resprouts. That speed is exactly why it is such a rewarding way to build instant jungle structure among your hardy exotics.

Can you grow Tetrapanax in pots?

Yes. A large, deep container suits it well and has the useful side effect of restraining its suckering, so it stays put on a patio. Use a rich, free-draining, loam-based compost, water and feed generously in summer for maximum leaf size, and move it somewhere sheltered in a cold winter. It makes a spectacular specimen among your plants for pots.

Does Tetrapanax like sun or shade?

Both, within reason. It grows happily in full sun or light, dappled shade. Full sun and a sheltered position give the sturdiest stems and help the plant harden off before winter, while a little shade can keep the giant leaves lush and stop them scorching in a hot, dry spell. Wind shelter matters more than the exact amount of sun.

Do Tetrapanax lose their leaves in winter?

Often, yes, and it is nothing to worry about. In a mild, sheltered garden it can stay semi-evergreen, but in most of the UK a hard frost cuts the big top leaves back. The hardy roots (rated RHS H3) survive and resprout strongly from the base in spring, usually giving an even better clump. Mulch the crown deeply in autumn in colder gardens and see our what to expect guide.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 48 hours with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
Why Grow Tropicals

Plants delivered the way they deserve

Packaged with Care

Packaged with Care

Every order is hand-packed in eco-friendly, protective packaging - refined through thousands of deliveries to ensure your plant arrives healthy, hydrated, and looking its best.

Backed by our Live Arrival Guarantee.

Perfect for Gifting

Perfect for Gifting

From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

Delivered fresh, beautiful, and gift-ready.

Sustainability at Heart

Sustainability at Heart

All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

Good for your home - and the planet.

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Tetrapanax papyrifer
£37.99